Shadows of the Opera
by DefyGravity18
Summary: Christine has passed away, her son Charles has just turned 25. A talented and good looking young man whose outer beauty reflects that of his inner beauty. This is his story of life and finding out who he is. Kay & musical stage and movie related.
1. Chapter 1

Prologue

RAOUL

1906

I still can't believe she's gone. It's been over eight years since she passed away, and yet, it still seems like yesterday she gave birth to our son. My Christine. _Our_ Christine, for you see, she was never really mine. According to the law, she was mine, my wife, but, there remained in her heart a longing for the one she had left so many years before. After he'd made us leave him to die, we'd assumed that was exactly what he did and tried to move on with our lives. We were happy enough, but every so often, I would catch her staring longingly at a small scrap of paper and a small dual portrait which she liked to keep in our private drawer. It was then that I knew she was thinking of him, and it was best not to disturb her when she was lost in her memories.

Today is Charles's twenty-fifth birthday and I have gone to the cemetery to place a single red rose on her grave. It was our tradition, Christine's and my own, for me to give her a red rose on our son's birthday. Every year he only grows more beautiful. I know well that beautiful is not a word that is commonly used to describe a man, but I can think of no other word to fit. _Handsome_ does not even begin to justify the beauty this man possesses, or his talent. He is a musician, critically acclaimed since he was but a boy. He has already played venues in London, Spain and was even asked to play in Italy for the Pope on Christmas Eve one year. He is also an artist, writer and plans to be an architect with offers from firms all over Europe and even America. 

I wait patiently, but anxiously for the day when Charles announces he's fallen in love. He tells me all the time he is in no hurry and is quite content with just his music and his arts. Sometimes it worries me, but I would never say anything for it has been in my experience that trying to control every aspect of your child's life can backfire on you. My younger sister always scolds me for worrying too much, having four children of her own. She dotes on Charles and he stays with her and her husband in London for two months every summer. Charles is very close with his cousins, three girls and a boy. Rosaline, Camille, Genevieve and Daniel. With only one child, I, of course, doted on them too, the three girls being the daughters I never had. Christine had so hoped for a daughter one day but for some reason, she was never able to conceive after Charles was born.

All of my nieces and my nephew were gifted children, they would be, their mother was extremely talented in her own right, but their talents paled in comparison to that of my son. They are coming here today, since my sister and brother-in-law were in Paris for the week. As I ride back to my home, I look forward to seeing them all, and of course, seeing my son, who has been gone for two days meeting with yet another architectural firm. I sigh, thinking of it for he could be so successful as a musician, but he had to make his own decisions.

As I enter the house, I hear loud laughter coming from the library. My sister is seated on the couch, smiling to herself and reading a book while her husband speaks to Daniel about his schooling. The three girls are crowded around our piano with Charles at the center, playing and entertaining them to tears. He is mimicking a diva we saw once at the London opera house, singing in falsetto and accompanying himself. I cannot believe all of the children are practically adults. Camille resembles my sister the most with strawberry blonde hair and bright blue eyes, while the other two girls have their father's sandy brown hair color. My brother-in-law looks up and gives me a nod as my sister puts her book down to come and give a quick hug.

"It's quite the madhouse in here dear brother..." She laughs, "But it is so good to see you...it's really been too long." I chuckle, patting her head as if she were still only fifteen and not a forty-one year old mother of four.  
"Oh Alana, why don't you and Garrett just move back to Paris?" She sighs, nodding toward the children.  
"London is their home, they couldn't bear to leave..." I just shake my head, smiling to myself as I shake my brother-in-laws hand and pat my nephew's head. He is my sister's eldest child and a very responsible young man. He is the spitting image of his father.

As I take a seat next to Alana, my three nieces bombard me with kisses and hugs, all of them talking at once in their teenaged chatter.  
"Uncle, " says my youngest niece Genevieve, who is thirteen, "Charles taught me how to play part of Fur Elise today!" I smile, wishing I could have had a daughter who looked just like my darling wife.  
"Oh did he? Well, you shall have to remember your poor humble uncle one day when you are rich and famous!" I say, winking at her mother who is trying to fix sixteen year old Camille's braid.

Eighteen year old Rosaline, our lovely Rosie, is admiring her brand new engagement ring in the brilliant chandelier light. I reach out my hands for her to give me a hug too, which she obliges.  
"I still cannot believe little Rosie is getting married," I say, feeling old and Garrett smiles lovingly at his second born.  
"I know...my little girls are all grown up." He says and Genevieve pouts at him, going to sit on his lap.  
"I'm not Daddy, aren't I still your little angel?" He presses a kiss to her temple,  
"Of course you are precious, you were our baby!" Alana raises an eyebrow at her husband as she pats Camille's rosy cheek.  
"Don't baby her Garrett, she's nearly fourteen!"

Camille snorts and looks back at Charles, whom she shares the closest bond with.   
"Damn little attention hog..." She mutters, making him roar in his rich laughter as he tinkers with the piano. He gathers up his sheets of music and brings them over, sitting on the other side of his aunt and offering them to her for approval. She had studied music as a girl, so he appreciated all of her insight. She peered at the notes, raising her eyebrows a bit and nodded.  
"Incredible, as always love, but it lacks inspiration..." His eyebrows furrowed in confusion.  
"Inspiration?" He asked as she looked at him seriously.  
"My sweet nephew, don't get me wrong, it is brilliant, as is all of your work, but I fear you are becoming too consistent. There is no passion behind the music. No meaning..." He nods in understanding, but knowing him as I do, I can sense his determination and his will to succeed.

I stand, feeling now would be a good time to present my surprise birthday gift to him.   
"Perhaps you shall become inspired tonight at the opera." I said, pulling from my inside coat pocket, two tickets to tonight's production of _Faust_, which I had picked up this morning from the managers. Tickets were easy enough for me to come by, considering I had been a huge patron to the Paris opera for almost twenty-six years now. Charles's eyes instantly lit up at this and he got up quickly to come hug me.  
"You always know just what I want Dad." He said, and I only smile at him, savoring every moment he calls me _Dad_, for I know it shouldn't be my true title in his life, and then the horrible sadness fills me, for I know our lives are a charade, a masquerade, yet I still cling to it. Every year, I tell myself I will tell Charles the truth about his parentage, that I will show him the portraits of his grandparents in the private drawer, but I can never bring myself to. I don't know if I ever will...


	2. Chapter 2

CHARLES

I am twenty-five today, yet I feel no different than the day I turned sixteen except the fact that Mother isn't here to kiss me on both cheeks like she did every year. As a child, I adored her to the point of worship. Everything I had created was for her. Music, art, everything. I always felt as though I had to prove my worth to her, yet she never showed me anything but pure love. When she looked at me, she had such a glow in her warm brown eyes I thought I would die of happiness. My father was more than any child could ask for, wise, kind, gentle and doting. He loved my mother with every inch of his soul and told her that until the day she died.

When Mother died, the only experience I'd ever had with death was when her Siamese cat, my beloved Ayesha died. My father could never understand why she loved that cat so much, or why Ayesha clung to me when I was born. As if there was something inside of me that no one else had. When she finally succumbed to disease, my world was shattered, but I felt strangely at ease knowing she was finally at peace. I remember lying in bed as a child and hearing her weep, calling out a name which I could not make out so I assumed it was my father's name. I never asked her about it, I dared not, for what if she stopped loving me?

The last time I saw her alive was days after my sixteenth birthday. She was ghastly white and her lips pale and chalky. Not at all like the vibrant woman she had once been. The doctors had called her illness cancer. At the funeral, my father had mumbled something like,

"She is with Erik now…" My head snapped up. I'd heard the name before, but decided to keep my mouth shut. It wasn't until later that year at the opera, did I find out who he was. Some sort of genius architect who had known my mother quite well. I never asked about him again after that incident. It wasn't really important. Just an old acquaintance. Still, it was that conversation and seeing the Paris opera that inspired me to become an architect.

Dad keeps asking me when I am going to fall in love. Honestly, it isn't my top priority. I live in my music and my architecture. Girls were stupid and shallow anyway and I wasn't one to fawn over a pretty face. I also make sure my silly cousins have enough pride in themselves not to be shallow. Their mother would never allow it anyhow. Aunt Laney took over somewhat as my mother figure when Mother passed, and in her children I found the brother and sisters I'd never had. Camille and I were closest, she was my partner in crime as I like to call her, always getting into mischief and I was wildly protective of all three girls as was Daniel. When Rosie got engaged last year, we stood solid as stone and made the poor boy stutter in fear until Dad and Uncle Garrett came in and scolded us. We now get along famously with Drake, her fiancé, but we still snicker about that day with him.

Tonight, Dad got us tickets for _Faust._ Opera is the great love of my life, and Dad knows it. He always made sure to know what I loved. After Ayesha died, my bed was so lonely and cold at night for she had curled up around my head, giving my forehead a quick lick before purring and falling asleep. Dad saw how unhappy I was, so when I was twenty, for my birthday he brought home a beautiful Siamese kitten, which I named Aida, after the opera. Funny how he found a kitten with almost the exact same markings as my Ayesha.

As I am getting ready for the opera, Dad walks in and begins to tie my bowtie. I let him, knowing he needs this. He loves to feel needed and who am I to take that from him?

"How do I look?" He asks with a grin and I smile,

"Like a twenty year old Dad, the same way you've looked since I was a kid!" He chuckles and gives me another quick hug. Ever since Mother died, he really showered me with affection as if I could fill the void in his life that Mother's death had caused. Turning serious, he put a hand on my shoulder and said,

"Listen Charles, there really is no pressure for you to get married. I just want you to know that…" I smile, eyeing him suspiciously.

"Did Aunt Laney tell you to say that?" I ask jokingly and his expression doesn't change.

"I'm serious Charles. I love you, and you can decide when you are ready." I pull him close.

"Thanks Dad, I love you too." He smiles.

"You don't know how great it feels to hear you say that…"

We arrive at the opera house with the normal chaos unfolding before us. People rushing in, chatting loudly. Suddenly I heard my name called as a small blonde ballerina in full costume comes running at me full speed and jumped into his arms. Laughing, I spun her around and set her gently on her feet. Deirdre Bennett, daughter of Meg Giry-Bennett, my adoptive aunt, and granddaughter of my adoptive grandmother Annie. She was now twenty-one, yet she looked like she was only a girl of sixteen. I ruffled her hair and she giggled.

"Decided to come home, did you?" She asked, inquiring about my trip.I pinched her nose gently and said,

"I suppose…where's your mother?" I asked and she shook her head, smiling.

"Backstage with the other dancers. I should really get back before she has my head! I just wanted to say hello!" _Silly Girl, _I thought to myself as she kissed Dad on the cheek and flounced back the way she'd come. The ushers were motioning for us to take our seats and we made our way up to our normal seat in Box Five. It really did have the best view. We had just gotten to our seat as the overture began and I flipped open my program. I was surprised to read that there would be two solo ballerinas tonight, Deirdre of course being one and the other a girl I had never heard of. _Madeleine Denton._ She had to be good to meet Aunt Meg's standards.

As the opera began, I rolled my eyes as the mediocre diva Benedetta began her first aria. She was, like so many before her, an egotistical, loud mouthed overrated name who thought she was God's gift. Yet, the managers still were blind to true talent. Always, they regretted their decisions of diva, but the contract chained them to her for at least two years. The opera was good enough, being _Faust_, but it bothered me that it could have been done so much better. Still, I clapped when the diva finished her aria and patiently waited for the ballet to begin.

The curtain closed as the cast set up for the ballet, and opened back up to reveal the _corps de ballet._ Deirdre glided out, turning _en Pointe _and pirouetting perfectly as always. The crowd went mad as she did her _Chaines_ and finally whipped into her _fouettes, _spinning with such precision as she pirouetted out of it and stepped off stage as the next girl flitted on stage with her back to the audience, with exquisite _port de bras,_ or carriage of the arms. As she gracefully turned to face the audience, I felt all of the blood drain from my face and my palms become sweaty. I looked over to Dad, who was staring at the girl in wonder. It felt like my entire world had been ripped apart…


	3. Chapter 3

MADELEINE

As Deirdre and I take our individual bows, I cannot help but smile, for once satisfied with something that has happened to me. When I came to the opera six years ago, I had expected nothing more than the trash I had been given all my life. I'd been living on the streets of Paris from a very young age as an orphan. My mother, Chloe, had been a prostitute, my father a wealthy married man who'd wanted nothing to do with me. She'd died of syphilis when I was six and since I had no family, I would have had to live in an orphanage, which is really just a fancy word for a filthy, abusive, disgusting environment where children are spit on until they are old enough and lucky enough to get out. I ran from the house before the police had a chance to find Mother's rotting corpse.

I had always been determined and got my first job at age seven after a year of eating other people's garbage as a dishwasher at a local café. It wasn't a particularly pleasant job, but at least I could afford to eat. The manager, Monsieur Dupont let me sleep on the kitchen floor near the stove at night so I wouldn't have to sleep out in the chilly weather. Not that he didn't require a repayment; he was by no means a kind man. I try not to think of those days when my innocence was lost well before it should have been, but I do not regret it for if I hadn't agreed to his terms, I would probably be dead today.

By the age of twelve, I was avoiding going back to the café until after it had closed since my working hours ended about an hour before closing. I was so incredibly tired. Tired of being used as an outlet for a man's anger and desires. Tired of being a filthy little nothing, who people avoided on the street because I smelled like trash and dish soap. One particularly cold night when I was twelve, Monsieur Dupont and I had had a horrible fight after I'd accidentally cried out that he was hurting me. He'd hit me across the face with his huge fist and told me to get out. I'd didn't hesitate and quickly pulled my clothes over my body before I stumbled out the door, afraid he'd come after me if I moved too slow. I had no possessions to speak of other than my mother's locket, which I never removed.

I walked down the streets of Paris, my teeth chattering as I clutched my thin chemise and old pinafore to my body. The wind was blowing and it was beginning to snow. I'd walked so far and so fast that soon I was quite lost and didn't know where to turn. I finally came to a huge magnificent building which I knew was the Paris Opera house. _Maybe if I lay on the steps,_ it will not be so bad…I tried to lie as close to the door as possible, aching to feel the warmth from inside. I pulled my legs up into my pinafore as far as I could for it was much too short, having stolen it from someone's trash. I had almost fallen asleep before I'd heard a girl's voice.

"Maman! Look there!" She cried. I slowly opened my eyes to see a blonde girl and a woman who was quite obviously her mother. There was also an older woman dressed in all black, who had a sharp but warm look to her. I braced myself for what was to come next, but the next thing I knew, the old lady had me by the arm and was firmly saying,  
"Child! Get into this building before you catch your death out here!" She practically dragged me into the building, the warmth hitting my ice cold face pleasantly. I stumbled behind the old lady, trying to keep up with her as she held my arm.  
They brought me into a dormitory room and sat me on a small twin bed. The blonde lady leaned down to look at my face, gasping when she saw my cuts and bruises.  
"Mother, will you look at this?" She said to the old woman, who had retrieved a warm cloth from the bathroom and had begun to wipe my face with it. She shook her head sadly at the sight of me. She was rough but I could sense there was softness to her as she did the same for my arms and legs. I couldn't remember the last time I had bathed and, feeling embarrassed I began to cry. The old lady took my face into her hands ever so gently and said,  
"Relax child, you are safe now…no one here is going to hurt you. Now why don't you tell us who you are and how you came to our door."

I told them everything from Mother, to Monsieur Dupont. They sat in stunned silence, just listening, trying not to seem too alarmed, but I knew what they were thinking. I was nothing more than street trash and deserved nothing but pity. Well, damn their pity! I began to get up to leave but the old woman sat me back down, firmly saying.  
"You will stay here in the opera. I will talk to Messieurs Firmin and Andre, the managers tomorrow to see about you getting a job here." I breathed, finally hopeful.  
"Really?" I asked, looking to both woman. The blonde lady nodded, smiling as the old woman disappeared into the room where the younger girl was.

"What shall we call you girl?" She asked me and I gasped, realizing I had not told them my name.  
"Madeleine," I said, "Madeleine Denton…" The old woman returned with a clean white nightgown in hand and said,  
"I am Antoinette Giry and this is my daughter, Meg Bennett. That girl in the other room is her daughter, Deirdre. She is fifteen, how old are you?" I blushed.  
"Twelve…" I said, quietly and her eyes widened.  
"Twelve years old and have already lived a life no thirty year old has." She muttered to herself, "Well then, off with those filthy rags." I didn't hesitate for I had no doubt she would strike me with her cane if I didn't obey her.

I started out as a maid and was given hand me down dresses from the older girls. I cleaned up the dressing rooms after the performers had done with them, and I scrubbed the floors of the grand ballroom. I didn't mind the work for at least I didn't have to worry about being beaten on a daily basis. Still, it had its pros and cons. For instance, some of the older ballerinas would make fun of me as I worked, calling me a dust bunny and other pointless names. Nothing I hadn't been called before, so I just ignored their pettiness and went on with my work silently. If I wanted to I could exceed all of them in talent, and from the first day they teased me on, I vowed to make it happen.

I woke up three hours earlier than usual every morning to finish my work early and then I would sneak into the backstage area and mimic the ballerina's moves, teaching myself. I paid close attention to Madame Bennett as she taught, soaking in the vocabulary and watching as she demonstrated for the class. Soon after I began this, as I did my work every day, I would find myself doing _Petit rond de jambe par terres,_ and _pirouettes_ as I mopped the floor or polished furniture. I was obsessed with excelling in the ballet and even at night before bed, I practiced before the small mirror in my meager dormitory room.

No one ever spoke to me except for Deirdre Bennett, who was three years older than I and we became fast friends. She gave me tips on ballet, giving me the one on one tuition I needed. I admit, it wasn't the greatest tuition but I really did appreciate the gesture. So few people in my life had treated me with kindness, I took any I could get. One morning, after I had finished the chores for the day, I stood in the shadows backstage, practicing the routine that Madame Bennett had taught to the class that day when I heard someone clear their throat. I whirled about to see Madame Giry standing there with a rare smile on her face as she approached me.

"You dance?" She asked me, surprised. I flushed, embarrassed that I had been caught.  
"I'm sorry Madame, I only watch and mimic, I am no dancer." I said, hoping she wouldn't tell the managers what I had been up to. She clicked her tongue,  
"That's really too bad, Madeleine, because I was going to say you are one of the best I've seen." My eyes brightened, as I sighed in relief.  
"You were?" She laughed.  
"Yes, I was…in fact I think I will talk to Meg tonight and see if we can't arrange for you to join the corps de ballet." Without thinking, I threw my arms tightly around her in a rare show of affection, immediately feeling embarrassed.  
"I'm sorry…" I said, looking down and she tilted my chin up.  
"Nonsense." She said.

The next day, I was introduced to the class as the new student along with some grumbling from the crueler girls. Madame Bennett threatened them to hush or leave and they never bothered me again. Six years later, here I am, having just danced my first solo in _Faust._ As Deirdre, whom I lovingly call Didi and I walk backstage we are crowded by our fellow performers and friends. As I am laughing with Didi about how nervous we both were I look up and meet the most captivating pair of silvery green eyes I have ever seen. I look away, ignoring it and go back into my conversation until I feel a gently tap on my shoulder. I turn and find myself once again lost in those surreal eyes, almost entirely speechless, but careful not to make it obvious. He offers me a bouquet of red roses and says in the most beautiful voice I've ever heard,  
"Mademoiselle, would you please accept these flowers and my invitation to accompany me to the gala tonight?"


	4. Chapter 4

CHARLES

"Excuse me?" She says, looking like she hasn't heard a word I said. My mouth feels like it is glued shut as Deirdre Bennett watches, suddenly interested. Many of the ballerinas standing around have quieted and are also watching in disbelief. Madeleine's hazel eyes drift to the emblem on my jacket, which is of course the Chagny crest. I breathe deeply to repeat myself, still holding out the flowers to her.  
"Um...I asked if you would like to join me for the gala..." I manage to spit out, my cheeks feeling hot. Her beautiful eyes flash suddenly with anger.  
"What kind of a fool do you take me for?" She asks, hands on hips. I can only look at her, confused. Have I said something wrong?  
"I'm sorry?" I say, unsure of what to do, she backs me into a corner, finger pointed.

"I am supposed to accompany you to the gala and we will dance and you will tell me how I have affected you as no other woman has. Then you will tell me that if I play my cards right, you can get me a leading role in the opera, but for a small price of course! I believe you know what I mean." I look to Deirdre for some help, but she shrugs so I look back to the flashing hazel eyes as I am holding my arms up as if I have been caught in a crime.  
"No...no I would never-" I stammer and she backs off a bit.  
"I suppose you think I am just some silly ballet tart who will fall into your arms at the first sign of money and your good looks, _Monsieur de Chagny!_"As she says this I can hear one of the other ballerinas murmur,  
"I'll take him any day..." Deirdre gives the girl a look.

"Please mademoiselle," I plead with her, "I only wanted us to enjoy each other's company at the gala." I can't help it. Something has drawn me to her, and I don't know whether it is romantic or what, and I wouldn't know because I have never been in love or anything remotely close to it. She takes the flowers roughly and tosses them at my feet.  
"That for your company Monsieur!" She fires and stomps away, her brown curls bouncing down her back. Before she turns the corner she gives me one last glance and shakes her head angrily as I stand watching her in disbelief. Deirdre comes to my side and leans against me with her elbow on my arm as the other girls lose interest and leave to join the gala.   
"Smooth Charles...really smooth." She says with a laugh, as I look down at her desperately.

"What did I do Deirdre? I only asked her to come to the party with me!" I say, and Deirdre's eyes darken as she shakes her head.  
"You can't do that with Maddie. She's different Charles. Remember the girl I told you we found in the cold that I talk about all the time?" She said and I nodded remembering. "Well, that was Maddie!" She exclaims and suddenly it all comes together. Of course. Maddie. Madeleine. They were the same and Granny Giry and Aunt Meg discussed her with Dad too sometimes. Why hadn't it clicked? Deirdre went on,  
"Her mother died when she was six, her father rejected her. She ended up working in some café for this horrible man who...forced himself...well you get the idea."

My hand went to my mouth. I couldn't imagine someone being treated like that.  
"Bottom line, she doesn't trust men. She's terrified of you..." Deirdre says. I sigh, feeling like a complete jackass running a hand through my dark hair. Deirdre pats my arm once and says,  
"Don't give up hope Charles...it's not like you." She smiles, but it doesn't make me feel any better.  
"Why? It's not like I can make her talk to me...I don't deserve to talk to her..." I mutter, feeling defeated as I bend down to pick up the roses. "She hates me!"Deirdre lets out a huge sigh,  
"She doesn't hate you, she doesn't even know you..." She's trying to make me feel better, but I just want to go home and disappear into my room. "Come on, let's go..." She says, dragging me back toward the ballroom. 

The first person I see is Dad, who looks up and sees me without the girl. He gives me a sympathetic look and comes over to us, kissing Deirdre on the cheek.  
"How did it go?" He asks, and I shake my head.  
"She basically refused." I said, looking around to see if she is in the room. Deirdre sighs and says,  
"She threw the flowers at him and that was that." I give her a look and she shrugs innocently.  
"I'm going to find Ma and Granny. See you later!" She says, flouncing away. Dad smiles and shakes his head.  
"That girl is just like her mother." He says, giving Aunt Meg a quick wave. Her husband and son are also here with her. 

"Charles!" I hear a voice calling my name that I recognize as one of my good friends Gabriel Ames. He's three years older than I and has a slight deformity on his right cheek. I admire him though, he's never tried to hide it. In fact, the sly devil, he tells all the girls he got the "scars" in some heroic stunt or something.  
"Gabe!" I yell, slapping him on the back, glad to have the company. Maybe it will get my mind off of Madeleine.   
"You're back!" He says, and I nod as he hands me a glass of champagne.  
"Another dead end for me. I just can't find the right architectural firm..." I trail off, looking around the room again. He just shakes his head at me.  
"I don't see why you want to be an architect. I would kill to have half of the musical talent you do. Hell Charles, if I were you I would buy this old dump and really make it shine again."

"Gabe, I've wanted to be an architect for a long time now. Many great men were architects. It's a good job." I say, though I would love to make music my profession, I just can't stand the industry right now. Dealing with outrageous demands of prima donnas, fighting, publicity problems.   
"Well, who says you can't do both Charles? You could do it, if you found the right girl, she could help you run the place. God knows, those two old coots should have retired years ago." I can't help but laugh at Gabe's easy chatter. He's a real comedian, this one. One of my best friends since childhood, he was also close with my cousins and their parents, his own parents having been their good friends. He'd been away at college himself for a while now, but it seemed he was back for good. All I can say in response is,  
"Yeah, the right girl...uh...listen, I'm going to take a walk, I'll be back."

He looks at me, confused but shrugs it off.  
"Sure, I'll just go find myself a dance partner." He says and turns to a redheaded girl, leading her onto the dance floor. I make my way into the darkened theater and stare around in awe as I always have, remembering my father's brief telling of the man who built it. Erik. _I don't know who you are, but damn, do I admire you..._ I was brought out of my enchantment by a soft sound of female singing accompanied with piano. It was part of a piece from _Faust,_ and so lovely I thought I might cry. An untrained voice, indeed, but angelic nonetheless. I can see her seated at the piano in the shadows, her fingers stumbling over the keys, but her voice made one overlook the fact that she was not a pianist. As I walked closer, I could faintly see her and it became completely clear that it was Madeleine. Still, I could not bring myself to turn and walk away. 

She hads come to a part where she couldn't see to find the right note on the piano, squinting in the darkness to look at the music. I had crept up so quietly I am now standing behind her and she had no idea as she kept pressing the wrong key.  
"Damn it..." She curses under her breath as I reach over her to lightly hit the correct note. She whirls around, her eyes fiery with rage as she notices who I am.  
"What are you, some kind of ghost!" She cries, and I shake my head.  
"I am only Charles..." I say, praying she won't walk away as she had before. She turns back to the piano, opting to ignore me completely.

I push the feeling of wanting to run behind me and find the courage to say.   
"Madamoiselle Denton, I wish for you to accept my apology for my forwardness earlier. I never meant to offend you." I can see her shoulders raise as she sighs.  
"Look Monsieur de Chagny...just leave me alone." She says and I could swear I hear her whisper _please._ I look around, seeing a remaining red rose near the edge of the stage from the final bows and take it.  
"As you wish..." I say as I place the rose on the bench beside her before turning to leave. Before I exit the room completely I look back and can see her staring at the rose as if she's never seen one before. 

Tonight as I fall asleep I cannot get her voice out of my mind. In fact, I cannot get her out of my mind. Her face, her hair. Everything. If only I had a picture of her, which I could look at before I shut my eyes. _I could draw her..._ Then again, I haven't really drawn anything but blueprints for years now, and suddenly I realize the passion I'd thought I'd lost for art of all kinds has been rekindled. I could...I could train her! Though, I've never trained anyone. She doesn't even want to be in my presence, that would never work. I must earn her trust. I _will._ I have to...


	5. Chapter 5

MADELEINE

I woke up today after a night of tossing and turning to find I had missed practice. I leapt out of my small bed and managed to pull on one of my more decent dresses before running out my door and into the hall. As I walked into the theater I saw Deirdre and her mother standing with Madame Giry near the stage. Didi saw me and waved me over to them, smiling. _Why is everyone so happy?_ I wondered as I approached them.  
"What's going on?" I asked Didi. I was completely confused as to why I wasn't getting a thorough scolding on my missing practice.  
"The Vicomte de Chagny has invited us all to his home tonight." She exclaimed, with a giggle.  
"Great, but why is this news? Don't you go over there all the time?" I asked, looking from Didi, to her mother to Madame Giry. Deirdre clasped her hands together.  
"Yes, we do but tonight will be the first time you come with us!" She squealed.

I could only stand there with my mouth hanging open. The Vicomte de Chagny wanted me to come to his house? Why? Of course, the man from last night was his son. I shook my head.  
"No…no I can't cannot. I have…um, plans…" I said lamely and Madame Giry narrowed her eyes at me.   
"Lying does not become you Madeleine…" She said sternly and I reddened, knowing full well I could never get anything past her wise eyes.  
"Does this have something to do with Charles de Chagny, Maddie?" Deirdre asked me and I didn't answer, I could only look at my feet stupidly. Deirdre's mother put her arm around me.  
"Maddie, it's just dinner…" She laughed, kissing my temple. I sighed,  
"Fine…I will go…" I said, defeated and Madame Bennett said,  
"Come to my house at four o'clock and wear your best dress." I nodded as they all turned to leave and Didi leaned over to whisper,  
"Wear the blue one with the small embroidered flowers…" She said and I just stared after them as they walked away.

After they'd gone, I went back to my room and washed up before putting my blue dress on. It had been hanging in one of the old unused dressing rooms and Deirdre had found it and given it to me. It couldn't have been worn more than once before I'd owned it. I never dared to enter that dressing room. I'd been in there once to clean it shortly after I'd come here and there was an eerie presence in that room with the huge mirror. I don't believe in ghosts, or fate for that matter, but for the brief time I was in that room I did, and ran out of that room as fast as I could. I decided to take a walk and maybe get a bite to eat at the bistro down the road. Since coming here, I'd managed to save and budget my money well so that I was never hungry as I once had been. I grabbed the book I'd been reading and headed out.

It was a rare warm late fall morning and I took it in, soaking up the warmth of the sun as I walked. I entered the bistro, which was unusually crowded and decided to sit at one of the tables near the window. I ordered some bread and butter, not wanting to ruin my appetite for later and settled in with my book. I usually didn't like romance fluff, so I opted for murder mysteries. I was completely enthralled and almost to the climax when I noticed someone had stepped up next to me. Slowly, my eyes wandered upwards to finally meet those enchanting silvery green ones from the night before.  
"What do you want?" I said. _What does he want with me?_ He smiled a beautiful dangerous smile and offered me a rose as he'd done last night.  
"May I join you?" He asked kindly and my eyes narrowed. Something told me he was sincere but I had trusted people too many times.  
"No." I said and went back into my book hoping he would just leave me be. Instead, he sat in the seat across from me. Again, I brought my eyes up to meet the twinkle in his.

"Look, what do you want from me?" I asked, exasperated and he smiled again, offering me the rose, which I roughly took. He'd tied a black ribbon to it, making for a nice touch.  
"I want to know what it is I've done that makes you hate me…" He said in his rich Heavenly voice.  
"What do you care what I think of you? I'm just some lowly chorus tramp from the opera…what I think doesn't matter…" I said, biting my lip to keep my chin from visibly quivering.  
"Yes Madeleine. Yes it does…to me it does, and you aren't just some lowly chorus tramp. You're a human being with feelings and needs." The honesty was so obvious in his eyes that I had to soften. I sighed loudly and raked a hand through my curls.

"I don't hate you, alright? I just don't want to sleep with you, and I sure don't want your goddamned charity! I can get parts on my own…" I said and he looked hopeful.  
"I'm sure you can. You have the most beautiful voice I've ever heard. Have you ever been trained?" He asked, and I shook my head in disbelief.  
"God no. I can't afford that…in the chorus, they make you learn to read music so sometimes I like to mess around on the piano. That's all." He nodded, listening to me intently. It was strange, to have someone actually listening to what I said and taking it into consideration.   
"Well, with your talent, you could have leads…I could help you!" He offered, and, instantly, all my anger came back.

"Yes, I am sure you could…just like I said, for a small price right?" I leaned over to him so that our lips were less than an inch away from each other. "You get me a lead, and then wait for me in my dressing room…is that it?" His eyes were fixated on my mouth.  
"N-no…I just…" He stammered.  
"You just _what?_" I demanded, not moving away from him. His eyes suddenly flashed with fire and he backed away angrily.  
"I was offering to train you, not sleep with you!" He snapped and I suddenly was dumbfounded.  
"What did you say?" I asked, fearing I had not heard him correctly.  
"To _train_ you! And, not in the arts of bedroom activity!" He replied and I still looked at him with my mouth hanging open like some fool.

"You want to train _me?_" I repeated for him and he nodded, suddenly relieved. I must have sounded like a moron. "Why?" I asked him suspiciously.  
"Because, I am sick of seeing mediocre trash singing parts that should be given to real talent." He said seriously, and I had to admire his passion, but suddenly I shook my head realizing the reality.  
"Even if you trained me and I became the best goddamn singer in the world, that doesn't mean they would give me a chance. I mean for one, there's Benedetta, the prima donna. Why would they get rid of her, a big name, just so a stupid chorus orphan can have a chance?" His eyes twinkled mischievously as he said,  
"We shall just have to get rid of her…" I couldn't help but smile.

"And how do you propose we do that dear sir?" I asked him, and he leaned forward, inspired.  
"We drive her and her mediocrity out." He said devilishly and suddenly a laugh escaped my lips which I quickly covered with my hand. He quickly took my other hand and gave it a squeeze.  
"It's alright to laugh, you know…" He said, grinning as I took my hand away from my mouth, but didn't remove my other one from his. I smiled sadly as I said,  
"This will never work…" He pulled his hand away as I put mine on my lap.  
"You're so negative…" He said, looking at me as if the sight of me broke his heart and I shook my head.  
"No Monsieur, I am a realist. Nothing has ever happened to me to make me think otherwise."

He leaned closer to me and smiled again,  
"Well, we shall have to change that then, won't we?" He said, and I laughed.  
"It won't happen Monsieur…I am set in my ways." I replied and he tilted his head a bit taking in my expression.  
"We shall see…" He said, studying me as I pushed the basket of bread forward.  
"Would you like some?" I offered, finally letting my guard down and he took a piece.  
"Thanks." He said with a grin and I finally had to look away, realizing I was staring at him like some crazy schoolgirl. "So are you coming tonight?" He asked, eating and I was suddenly confused.

"What? Oh! Yes…" I flushed, feeling dumb. He looked satisfied as he stood.  
"Good! Well then, I will see you then. I really have to run, I only came into town for some new art pencils and saw you in the window, so I decided to come and give you a peace offering." He gestured toward the rose. I picked it up, admiring it. In all my life, no one had ever given me a flower.  
"What's with the ribbon?" I asked, pulling it a bit. He shrugged,  
"It seemed so plain, so I decided to dress it up and the only ribbon the florist had was a black one."

"Nice touch." I said half smiling and he beamed again.  
"Thanks! Well, I really do have to get going. Dad will worry!" He rolled his eyes affectionately and I giggled, which was funny because I don't giggle. As he started toward the door I called after him.  
"Listen , I really am sorry about my behavior earlier Monsieur de Chagny!" He turned back around at the door.   
"It never happened…and it's Charles!" He said, and smiled at me. I stood and pointed to myself.  
"Maddie!" I said and he nodded.  
"I like it!" He replied before turning and walking out the door. I realized I was grinning like an idiot until I noticed everyone in the bistro was staring at me. Sheepishly, I grabbed my book and my rose and paid for my bread before leaving, all the while smiling


	6. Chapter 6

CHARLES

As I waited with Dad for our guests to arrive, I found myself pacing furiously. Almost everyone was here, but a few people were running a bit late. Nervously I looked into the hall mirror again for what must have been the ten thousandth time and combed my fingers through my dark hair. Dad must have seen me because I heard him laugh and come up behind me.  
"Charles, I've never seen you like this...calm down." He said in his gentle way. I turned to him, desperately.  
"What if she doesn't come? Then what?" I knew I sounded like an immature child, but maybe earlier had been just a fluke. Maybe she didn't really want to come at all and was just being nice to get rid of me. Dad put a hand on my shoulder.  
"If she doesn't come, then it's her loss Charles. You will just move on..." He said and I shook my head.  
"I don't know if I can..."

He chuckled,  
"You know who you remind me of?" He asked with a grin and I could only look at him.  
"Who?"  
"Your mother. She always used to get herself worked up when she was worried and when things finally turned out all right she would laugh at her silliness." His eyes glistened with tears at the thought of Mother. "I do miss her so." He said wistfully and I smiled sadly.  
"Me too Dad..." Suddenly someone cleared their throat in the doorway and both of us turned to see her standing there in her delicate blue dress. I could have sworn I heard Dad say under his breath,  
"If I hadn't known better I could have sworn it was..." He stopped suddenly and smiled politely at her.  
"Hello dear," He said, heading toward the dining room. "Dinner will be served very soon, so don't wander far." I nodded at him and turned to her. She smiled shyly and began to look around the hall.

"Your house is...beautiful..." She said, in awe looking at high ceiling and marble floor.  
"Thank you..." I said, unsure of what else to say to her. We stood just in silence for a few minutes, neither of us meeting the other's eyes.  
"I...um. I was worried you wouldn't come..." I said hesitantly and she laughed, nervously.  
"Well, I suppose I hadn't really given you reason to think I would..." She looked a bit embarrassed and flushed, "I really am sorry about being so rude to you...um...Charles." I walked toward her,  
"As I said, it never happened." She smiled again and looked at her feet. Suddenly I saw her jump and noticed Aida was rubbing along Madeleine's feet.  
"That's just Aida...my cat." I said, and she nodded, looking a bit relieved.  
"Will she bite me?" Maddie asked and I shook my head as she crouched down and scratched behind Aida's ears, making her purr.

"She's a good girl..." I said as Aida grew bored and slinked away gracefully.  
"She really is a gorgeous creature." Maddie said, smiling. "Sorry we're late. Deirdre and her brother were having a fight and took ten extra minutes to get out the door."

"That's quite alright." I said, laughing at Deirdre and Alex fighting. Alex was a year older than Genevieve and loved to aggravate his sister. He drove Aunt Meg and her husband William crazy, but Charles could safely say their home was never dull. I was just so relieved that Maddie hadn't decided not to come. I didn't know what exactly it was that I felt for her, but I knew it wasn't like anything I'd ever experienced.  
"Well, we had better get into the dining room before dinner comes out."I said and offered her my arm, which she took, and I could feel her arm shaking a bit.

"Well there you two are! We thought you might have gotten lost on your way in here..." Gabe said, sitting across the table from my cousin Camille and winked at her. She rolled her eyes and shook her head at him.  
"Gabriel Ames, when are you going to grow up?" She asked him and he cringed.  
"Ugh, don't call me _Gabriel,_ you know I hate that!" He whined as his mother Laura came up behind him and kissed him on the cheek.  
"You don't hate the name I _so carefully_ picked out for my baby boy, do you?" She laughed messing up his blonde curls.  
_"Mo-ther!"_ He said, grinning and kissing her cheek too.

Aunt Laney came into the room and sat next to Uncle Garrett near where Dad was sitting.  
"Mother and Papa are on their way..." She said to Dad, who nodded. All of the seats at the table were filled except for two seats beside each other in the middle. I gestured for Maddie to sit and sat next to her. She was now between Gabe and I. He leaned over to her and said with a grin,  
pointing to his cheek,  
"Got these scars when a few thugs were harassing some poor innocent girls...they got me good but at least the girls got away safely." He said, and I shot him a look of death.  
_"Gabriel Ames!"_ Laura cried from her seat near Aunt Laney as Maddie just looked at him and I wasn't sure if she believed him or not. Suddenly she grinned.  
"That's the biggest load of bull I've ever heard." He looked surprised and winked at me, but I still glared at him. He shrugged.  
"She's bright!" He exclaimed and Camille grumbled something under her breath at him across from us.

"Is there something you would like to share with the whole class Miss Reynolds?" He prodded her and her blue eyes shot fire at him like bullets. Henry Ames looked up at his son and tried to hold back a laugh as he said,  
"Gabe, you are twenty-eight years old. Please act like it." Aunt Laney laughed,  
"He's just like you, you know..." She pointed at him and laughed with Laura and Aunt Meg. Dad cleared his throat, trying to get everyone's attention.  
"I just wanted to thank you all for coming here tonight to celebrate Charles's twenty-fifth birthday and it is just so great to have all of our friends and family together."  
"Well, almost all of your family!" Came a voice as everyone turned to see my Grandparents standing there along with my great uncle, Christophe.

I stood to give them all a quick hug as Uncle Chris gave Aunt Laney a peck on the cheek.  
"How are things, dear?" He asked and she nodded.  
"Fine, fine...it's good to see you Chris." She said, motioning for them all to sit down. The truth was, Aunt Laney didn't call him "Uncle" because he wasn't her uncle. He was her biological father. Still she couldn't call him "Father" or "Papa" because Grandpa Georges was the man who had raised her. I still didn't know the whole story, but Dad has told me bits and pieces. Still, I love them all. They're my family. My cousin Dan was sitting across from Deirdre and he was discreetly trying to look at her without her noticing. He'd developed a crush on her since he'd noticed she was no longer an awkward young girl but a developed twenty-one year old woman.

After dinner, I asked Maddie if she wanted to leave the chaos of the post dinner chatter and she'd agreed kindly, taking my arm as I took her into the library.  
"Your family is great you know..." She said, looking a bit sad.  
"Thanks," I said nodding. They really were great. She turned to trail her finger along the glossy edge of the piano.  
"I don't have any family..." She said quietly, sitting softly on the bench. I sat beside her, feeling horrible for flaunting my family to her.  
"I'm so sorry..." I said, toying with the idea of taking her hand. I opted not to for fear she would pull away.  
"Don't be," She said, sighing, "It's better to be alone anyways...at least I don't know what I'm missing."

I stared at her, but she wouldn't meet my eyes.  
"You can't mean that...you would really choose to be alone?" I asked her, and she shrugged looking at me seriously.  
"Honestly, Charles. Who would want me? First of all I am an orphan. Second, I am a ballet dancer at an opera house, and third, I am not pure." I was taken aback by the third confession. How could someone like her not be pure? It just didn't make sense. She sighed.  
"The man I worked for before I came to the opera house, he let me stay in his café at night, but for...for a price." She said, closing her eyes at the memory.  
"For you..." I said, finishing for her and she nodded painfully. "How long did this go on?" I asked her, horrified.  
"From the time I was seven until I was twelve so five years..." She murmured. "I can still remember every detail of his face. His fat cheeks and double chin covered in stubble. And his breath. It always smelled like alcohol."

She gulped, staring straight ahead. I could only look at her, horrified. What kind of people treated children like that?  
"Who was he?" I asked her, wondering if I knew him. She almost whispered.  
"Monsieur Louis Dupont." I didn't know the man, to my relief and only nodded at her.  
"Why didn't you tell anyone?" I asked her and she shrugged.  
"Who would have cared? They just would have hauled me into an orphanage and I vowed never to see the inside of one. He finally just threw me out one winter and here I am...Madame Giry saved me." I closed my eyes, shivering at the image of a young girl wandering the cold streets of Paris after dark.  
"Why am I even telling you this?" She said aloud, looking upset. "I hardly know you..."  
"Maybe we knew each other in another life..." I offered with a small smile and she shook her head.  
"I'm sorry for rambling...I really am not looking for pity." She muttered and I leaned closer to her.  
"Pity you shall not receive but only admiration. You are one of the strongest people I have ever met Maddie." I said and she shrugged, looking away.  
"I only did what I had to for my survival. That doesn't make me strong."  
"Yes it does..." Even closer I leaned and she turned to look at me. Her big hazel eyes were surrounded by long dark lashes. I stared down at her perfectly formed lips as her eyes began to close. That beautiful mouth had pouted and was waiting for me to finish what I had begun as I wanted to so badly. Instead I froze, my eyes opening suddenly. She opened her eyes too, looking confused. She backed away, obviously a bit hurt.  
"What's wrong?" She asked uneasily and I sighed, trying to get enough oxygen in my lungs to answer her.  
"I...um..." I sighed again. "I've never done this before."


	7. Chapter 7

MADELEINE

"Wait…_what?_" I asked Charles, extremely confused as to what he'd meant. He breathed deeply.

"I said…I've never done this…" He repeated, leaving me just as confused as ever.

"Never done what?" I asked him, eyeing him suspiciously.

"Never kissed…" He stopped, and I grew even more frustrated.

"Never kissed…what? A chorus girl? An orphan? What?" I demanded and he just kept shaking his head meekly.

"A woman…" He said. "I've never kissed a woman…"

"Oh." Was all I could manage to reply, but I was still confused. "Not to be rude, but how is that possible?" I asked him suspiciously, wondering how a rich, handsome man of twenty-five had never kissed a woman.

He shrugged.

"I just never have. It wasn't important to me…" For some strange reason I believed him, but I was suddenly a bit uncomfortable after I realized what I was doing, so I stood up.

"Look," I said putting my hands up, "I think we should just be friends. This is a little much a little fast…" A look of disappointed crossed his face, but he nodded, swallowing.

"Friends…if that's what you want…" He said, and I began to feel horrible. He'd gone to all this trouble and I had just thrown it back in his face.

"Charles, what I meant was, I think we should take things one day at a time. Not rush into something we're not ready for. I hardly know you!" Relief came into those beautiful enchanting eyes.

"Friends." He said again, this time with a smile as he held out his hand for me to shake on it, which I did.

I found myself staring into those sparkling green eyes like a moth drawn to a flame.

"Um…are you alright?" He asked, and I snapped back to reality.

"Oh sorry…" I said, looking away quickly. What the hell was the matter with me?

"Do you want to go see what everyone's up to now?" He asked and I nodded as we went into the sitting room where everyone was crowded. Deirdre looked up at me and smiled, waving me over. I sat between her and Madame Giry.

"So what happened?" Didi whispered and Madame Giry shot her granddaughter a stern look.

"Deirdre that is enough." She warned giving me a smile. I blushed, watching as Charles sat next to his father across from us. I studied the two of them carefully, searching for the similarities one often saw in father and son and to my surprise, I saw none.

The Vicomte sat properly with his hands on his knees as did Charles's grandfather, but Charles sat back with his leg draped across his knee. It was funny, but, even though Charles was slouching he still looked devastatingly graceful. Also, both his father and grandfather had fair hair and light blue eyes while Charles had dark hair and green eyes. I leaned over to Deirdre, whispering,

"Didi…this may sound stupid, but does Charles look like his mother?" Madame Giry, even in her older age had amazing hearing and sharply looked at us.

"He takes after Christine's father…" She said quickly and Deirdre's mother looked at her so strangely that Didi and I had to look at each other, confused. I decided to drop the subject, but I could see that there was something going on here. Something that no one was supposed to know about. Maybe I could sense it because of all the things that had gone wrong in my life, I don't know but whatever it was, it certainly wasn't any of my damn business. Aida came into the room and leapt onto Charles's lap gracefully. He kissed her little black nose and scratched behind her ears. Suddenly for the strangest reason, I felt insanely jealous of that cat. _It's just a cat, Madeleine. He is your friend…_I reminded myself. I had made him such.

Charles's cousin, Camille and Gabe were on the floor sitting across from each other. She was extremely beautiful with the same blue eyes as the Vicomte and her mother had, but the strawberry blonde color of her hair was exquisite. She was the only one of her siblings to get the same hair as her mother. Indeed, she looked as if she was a carbon copy of her mother, who didn't look a day over thirty. Camille's two sisters were very beautiful too, but they took after their father as did their brother. I instantly liked Camille. She wasn't fluffy like most rich girls; she was very real and down to earth for a girl of only sixteen. Gabe himself was a very handsome man despite his slight scarring on his right cheek. He was a sly devil though, and I'd instantly liked him too. In fact, there wasn't one person here tonight that I could say I honestly disliked.

After a while, people were starting to leave. First, Charles's grandparents and great uncle, followed by his aunt and uncle and their children and finally the Ames family. As I got up to leave with the Bennetts and Girys, Charles motioned for me to come with him, so I let him walk me to the door.

"I uh…hope you had a good time tonight." He said, clearly still embarrassed from earlier. I nodded.

"Your family is great, Charles."

"They are wonderful…" He agreed and suddenly took my hand. "Look Maddie, I meant what I said earlier about you getting better parts at the opera. I would like to train you." I had forgotten already.

"Well, I have rehearsal until three tomorrow, but after that I am free." I found myself saying, and suddenly wanted to kick myself.

"I will meet you there at three-thirty." He said, smiling.

"Three-thirty it is then, goodnight Charles…" He pulled me into a quick hug, which seemed to last hours. I took in his smell, which was a strange mixture of cologne and his natural smell. It was nothing special, but I would remember the way he smelled all my life. I couldn't help myself as I pulled away and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek before turning to leave with the Bennetts. I turned once more to see him standing there with his father, half smiling and still touching his cheek. Three-thirty tomorrow. _What will come of this?_ I wondered as I got into the Bennetts' carriage.


	8. Chapter 8

CHARLES

"Charles, are you insane?" Dad asked me after I'd told him what I was doing later today. "You want to train a girl to take over for the prima donna?" I nodded seriously.  
"Benedetta is a waste of space and everyone knows it Dad!" I defended myself and he kept shaking his head.  
"Charles, that isn't for you to decide!" He cried, looking at me desperately and I almost felt a twinge of regret, but Madeleine's voice sang through my mind. No. I had to do this. She was too good to go on as she was, in the chorus. "Jesus Christ, you're just like-" He stopped himself, clapping a hand over his mouth. My eyebrows raised for he hardly ever cursed or allowed himself to get worked up.  
"Just like who Dad?" I asked, crossing my arms and leaning against the mantle in his study. He looked at me with such fear in his eyes, my heart broke for him.   
"No one...forget it."

Not wanting to upset him further, I let it go, since he probably was just talking about Mother as he always did when he was unhappy.  
"Look Dad," I began, determined, "I am going to do this...I'm sorry if you don't like it, but...but...I really believe in Madeleine." He looked up at me, beaten and sunk down into his desk chair, putting his face into his hands.  
"This can't be happening..." He muttered, sighing before raising his head again. "Charles, you are twenty-five years old, and I can't stop you anymore. If you feel you need to do this then I am behind you...but I want you to know I don't agree with it and wish you would reconsider for everyone's sakes."  
"Dad," I said taking his hand, "Nothing bad will come of this! I swear!" He patted my arm.  
"Just be careful..." He sighed.  
"I promise." I replied and left the room, closing the door almost all the way behind me. When I peered back into the crack, Dad had his head in his hands again and was reaching for his bottle of brandy.

As I walked down the hall I could hear my Aunt and Uncle arguing loudly in the room they were sharing.  
"Look Lane," Uncle Garrett said, "Our whole family is here. Paris is where we grew up. The children love it here...why don't you want to move back? The London business is perfectly fine and I think it's time for us to come home."  
"It's just...so many bad things happened here, I don't know...I'd like to come back, but I am scared...remember when you left me alone here when your father died right after our wedding? Every time we pass the old police house I still see his face..." _Whose face?_ I thought.  
"Alana, the past is over. It's time to move on. Besides, it was that incident that made us closer and eventually fall in love. I love you Lana. You're my best friend! Forty-one years later, here we are. We have four beautiful children. We are _happy_ Lana. Finally." I heard her sigh.  
"I love you too. You're right, I'm being silly. It's time to let go of old demons. Let's come home..."

That was all I heard as I reached my room and flung myself onto my unmade bed. I looked at the clock on my wall. Only twelve-thirty. _Damn._ On my desk, I noticed an ever widening stack of neglected blue prints that I should have been working on. I rubbed my eyes and walked over to my desk, sitting in my leather office chair. I picked up my new pencil, which I had sharpened the day before and began to put the finishing touches on my most secret project. _My own house._ I'd been working on it a while back, but had neglected it. The truth was, I didn't know if I would ever need it. There was a knock at my door.  
"Come in!" I called tiredly, and our older housemaid, Therese, walked in with new sheets for my bed and an envelope.

"My my, Charles, you live like a pig!" She cried, scanning the room as she set the sheets on the bed and came to my desk.  
"Don't work too hard darling," She said, patting my head in her motherly way and I smiled as she handed me the envelope. "This came for you today."   
"Thanks Therese." I said, looking at the name. _Monsieur Charles de Chagny._ She set about replacing my bed sheets with the new ones and making the bed nicely. I opened the letter and pulled out a small printed card from the opera house.

_We would like to cordially invite you to attend a masquerade ball on the eve of the impending new year to celebrate twenty-five successful years! Please RSVP.  
Sincerely,  
M. Richard Firmin  
M. Gene Andre_

"Anything special?" Therese asked, fluffing my pillows. I shrugged.  
"Just a ball...for new years." I replied and she came over to have a look at the invitation.  
"A masquerade no less! Will you go?" She asked me and I took the invitation with her. Usually silly parties bored me to tears, but things were different now.  
"Actually I am quite considering it!" I replied and she looked surprised.  
"I never thought I would see the day that Charles de Chagny was excited to go to a party...what's going on young man?" She demanded, laughing at me.  
"N-nothing..." I stuttered, turning red and making her laugh even harder.  
"I'm only teasing Charles..." She stopped looking at something on my desk. "Who's the girl?" She asked and picked up a rough sketch, smiling when she saw it.  
"This is a beautiful young drawing of your mother, except her eyes are too light and she hardly ever wore her hair down. I'm surprised you even remember perfectly how she looked after all this time!"

I took the picture, gasping when I looked at it. It _was_ mother with lighter eyes.   
"Therese. That is not Mother..." I said, quietly and she looked at me as if I were crazy.  
"Of course it is. Same mouth, same nose, same cheekbones...it's Christine alright." I shook my head.  
"Her name is Madeleine. I met her at the opera on my birthday..." I said, feeling a bit strange. I'd never made the connection that Maddie could be my mother's identical twin but for her hazel eyes. Therese was looking at me oddly.  
"Madeleine...is that the girl everyone keeps telling me about? The one who was here when I was off last night?" She asked, and I nodded.  
"I am actually going to meet her soon...she has rehearsal until three-thirty." Her eyebrow raised.  
"Does your father know about this?" Again, I nodded. She kissed my forehead and left the room, taking the dirty laundry with her.

I turned back to my artwork. No wonder Dad had been upset. It must have been painful for him to see someone who looked so much like her when he missed her so. Aida suddenly was at my feet and begging for attention in her gentle way. I lifted her up and kissed her wet little nose as she cuddled under my chin. As she grew bored and jumped from my lap, I admired her grace and beauty as she walked to the bed and gently laid across my pillow. Cats were enchanting animals, so immortal, with those glowing eyes, and so protective. With Aida, I knew I could never be lonely, but having a cat would never be enough for me. I needed something more than the love of a pet now, and I now wasn't sure what I needed or wanted.

Three-thirty finally came as I waited in the dorms for Madeleine to get out of rehearsal. Aunt Meg had shown me to Maddie's room and I sat in the chair, waiting for her quietly. As I looked around her room, I was a bit surprised at how little things she had in here. On the small table near the tiny old bed was a faded gold locket. I softly picked it up and opened it. Inside, was a tiny old photo of a fair haired woman with a lovely smile. The front of the locket was engraved with the name _Chloe._ On her small dresser was a hairbrush, a mirror, a wash basin and an old worn out pair of pointe shoes. The small alcove that served as her closet had about six dresses in it, including the blue dress she'd worn the night before. Suddenly, the door opened and Madeleine walked in, still wearing her ballet costume and tights as she carried her shoes tiredly. She threw them on the bed and laid down, not noticing me until I cleared my throat. Her head snapped up abruptly and she shrieked in fright, falling off of the other side of the bed.


	9. Chapter 9

MADDIE

I opened my eyes and found myself looking up at Charles as I rubbed my head. As he held out his hand to me, I accepted it and he pulled me up, pulling a bit too hard and making the both of us topple onto the bed with me falling on top of him. I quickly pulled back and stood up, crossing my arms. I wasn't really angry as I was embarrassed that he had scared me.  
"Jesus, are you sure you aren't some kind of ghost?" I said, trying to catch my breath and he sat up, laughing.  
"I'm sure...I thought Aunt Meg would have told you I was waiting for you in here..." He replied, with a half smile.   
"No, she must have forgotten..." I said, sitting next to him and rubbing my sore feet.  
"Did you hurt yourself?" He asked, genuinely concerned and I almost laughed.  
"No..." I replied and he said,  
"What's wrong with your foot?" This time I did laugh.  
"Well, you try standing on your toes with nothing more than a little block of wood to support you and tell me how your feet feel!" I exclaimed and he laughed, blushing.

"Sorry..." He said sheepishly and I couldn't help but grin.  
"Nothing to be sorry about...how would you know anyway, right?" He shrugged, clearing his throat.  
"So...uh...is there a piano or something we could use?" He asked, and I thought for a moment. There was of course the small storage room with an old grand piano in it. It was a bit dusty, but still pretty well in tune. I nodded.  
"Yes, there is the one I play on sometimes. It's in an old storage room at the end of the dressing room hall. Let me change my clothes and then we'll go down there." He nodded as I went behind my changing screen. As I removed my leotards and tights, I draped them over the top and could hear Charles gasp when I did so.  
"Is there a problem Charles?" I asked, trying not to laugh. Stupid hormonal boys. He cleared his throat nervously.  
"Erm...no." He mumbled as I fumbled with my chemise and corset, quickly lacing it in front and then turning it around to tie it. I threw on a dress and fixed my hair a bit which I decided to keep back.

"Ready!" I said, coming back around the screen to see a flushed Charles.  
"You look...uh...nice." He said, stuttering and I couldn't help myself any longer.  
"Wow..." I said in my most flirtatious voice, fluttering my eyelashes, "Are you always this eloquent a speaker?" I elbowed him gently and laughed aloud.  
"Sorry." He said again for what seemed like the twentieth time and I shook my head.   
"I was joking Charles..." I said, giving him a pat on the shoulder and motioning for him to follow me. We walked silently down the dark halls of the opera house until we got to that dreaded wing of the opera I hated for the storage room was right across from that old dressing room. A shiver went down my spine as we passed it and I threw the door to the storage room open and lit a candle.  
"It's a bit dark, but it works. And nobody will bother us because they don't come down here..." I said and he looked intrigued.

"Why don't they come down here?" He asked and I said,  
"It's just creepy. I just get a strange feeling when I pass that room across the hall..." I said, feeling like a silly ballet rat.  
"I see..." He replied, pulling out some music and sitting at the old piano, blowing a bit of dust off. He sighed, "Um...alright. Let's see how high your range is..." He said, positioning his hands on the keys. I nodded and sang the scales as he played them. His eyebrows raised as it got higher and higher. Finally, my voice cracked, telling him we had found my limit.  
"Impressive Madeleine..." He said, smiling at me in the dim candlelight. "Your highest note is an F above high C." I could only look at him blankly.  
"Is that good?" I asked and he nodded.  
"Very...all your voice lacks is control." He replied and I had no idea what he meant.

"Control?" I asked and he rose from the piano. He placed his hand on my stomach, pressing just below my ribs.  
"Right around here is a muscle called the diaphragm. This is where the support for your voice comes from. Learning to breathe right will help you control this muscle and in doing this you can gain control over your voice." He said softly, giving me a sort of understanding of what he meant.  
"I see." I said, trying not to move with his hand on my stomach. I realized I wasn't even breathing.  
"Now, what I want you to do is follow my lead and breathe with me. In through your nose...out through your mouth, pushing against my hand as you do." I did what he said and finally felt what he meant about the diaphragm. His hand moved as I breathed and he smiled.   
"Good...you picked that up fast. How about we do a few bars of this song from..._Hannibal.i" I nodded, a bit nervous. _

"iHannibal..." I repeated, "We're doing _Hannibal_ soon you know..." I informed him and he grinned.   
"I know..." He said and I raised an eyebrow at him.  
"You are positively evil! What are you up to, Charles?" I asked him and he shrugged innocently.  
"Nothing...nothing...just trying to figure out how to get Benedetta out and you in." He replied and I shook my head.  
"No! It's not possible! She's too big of a name...it'll never work. Do you even have a plan?" I asked him and his smile only widened.  
"Not yet, but I have a few ideas..." _Oh dear God, what have I gotten myself into with this madman?_  
"You're absolutely mad." I said to him, and he shrugged casually.  
"And your point...?" I was going to retort when he hushed me.

"The song is called "Think of Me," He said, interrupting my weak attempt, "It is the last aria of the opera and the lead, Elissa sings it." I became a bit annoyed by how stupid he thought I was.  
"Yes, Charles I know. I've been here for six years. I know the show..." I shot at him and he looked a bit hurt. Instantly I regretted my words, for he'd just been trying to help.  
"I'm sorry Charles...that was rude." I said with a sigh and he smiled.  
"No...don't worry about it. It was stupid of me to treat you like an idiot." He apologized and I nodded in acceptance.  
"Do you know the song well?" He asked me.  
"Well enough. I've heard it over twenty times." I said and in response he began to play the opening notes.  
"Good, sing then..." He commanded, and I did.  
_"Think of me, think of me fondly, when we've said goodbye...  
Remember me, every so often, promise me you'll try...  
On that day, that not so distant day, when you are far away and free...  
If you ever find a moment, spare a thought for me..."_  
After I'd finished the cadenza, I just stared at him in disbelief. Had that really been my voice? He was grinning from ear to ear and leapt from the bench, obviously caught up in his happiness and swung me up into the air. To my own surprise, I laughed and threw my arms around him as he spun us around. 

Suddenly, we realized what we were doing and he abruptly set me to my feet and shook my hand uncomfortably.  
"Sorry." We both said at the same time, and laughed.  
"You sound great Maddie!" He exclaimed happily and I brought my hands to my head, feeling dizzy with excitement.  
"It was unreal...like a dream...I sounded like...like an opera singer!" I cried, beaming. His eyes were full of pride.  
"I've never coached anyone before..." He said breathlessly. "We can do this, you know..." I turned to him, confused.  
"Do what?" I asked, looking into those mischievous light green eyes.  
"Bring talent to this place. Make you a star..." I stared at him. I'd never dreamt of fame or fortune. I was perfectly content with food and shelter. 

"Why me, Charles? Why not Deirdre or one of your cousins or something?" I asked him, wondering why he'd been so drawn to me.   
"I don't know Maddie," He admitted, "There's something special about you. Like you could do anything. Like _I_ can do anything when I am with you...we make a great team." I laughed uneasily.  
"We hardly know each other..." I said, ever the realist. His eyes seemed to glow in the candlelight.  
"Do you believe in fate?" He asked, suddenly and I was taken aback.   
"What?"  
"Fate." He repeated, "Do you believe in it?"  
"No. It's a silly myth. Love is overrated too..." I said bitterly and he looked so sad as he brushed the back of his fingers softly across my cheek.

"Poor Madeleine...you have been so hurt..." He practically whispered, his voice sending a shiver down my spine. I was drawn to his eyes in the dim light.   
"Your eyes look yellow in the candlelight..." I responded, and he laughed.  
"Is that a compliment?" He asked and I suddenly realized what I'd said.  
"I don't know..." I said, lamely and looked down and my hands. He brought my chin back up and I realized I was crying.  
"Maddie..." He whispered, comfortingly as he pulled me to him. "Maddie, Maddie, Maddie..." He repeated as if he'd never tire of saying it. It felt strange being comforted by this man, a stranger practically, and yet, I found myself clinging to him as if he were my guardian angel. My savior. I held onto him as if he were my only hope from being sucked into everlasting darkness and he rocked me gently.

He pulled back a bit and kissed me on the forehead. I kept my head down because I knew if I looked at him, he might kiss me, and I didn't think I would resist him.  
"Let's call it a day, shall we?" He asked me and I looked up at him and nodded. He picked up the candle and blew it out, keeping his arm around my shoulders and opening the door. The door across the hall caught his eye and we stopped.   
"What's in here? He asked me, and I sucked in a breath. The dreaded dressing room.  
"Just an old dressing room. No one's used it in years..." I said, and he looked down at me.  
"Why?"   
"I don't know..." I said. It wasn't a lie. I just didn't like the feeling I got when I went in there. As if some lost soul was trapped within its walls.

"Let's have a look..." He said, and I shook my head.  
"Charles, no." I protested, but it was too late for he'd already opened the door and gone inside. When I heard voices coming down the hall I quickly followed and shut the door. He was looking around.  
"My God," He exclaimed, "It's had to have been deserted for at least twenty years..." I nodded, looking at the painting on the wall. It was a woman, a former diva in full costume. The frame was engraved: _Carlotta Guidicelli as Elissa in Hannibal September 1880._  
"Twenty-five actually." I said, doing the math in my head as he gasped, pointing to another painting with the same woman in it. She wore a huge bright pink gown and was standing beside a smaller woman, who looked, surprisingly like me.

"What's wrong?" I asked him, eyeing the girl. He pointed to the smaller girl.  
"That's my mother." He said, pointing to the engraving.  
_La Carlotta as The Countess, Christine Daae as Serafimo, the pageboy. Il Muto, November 1880._   
"This was a year before I was born." He said, looking at the vanity. On it was an extremely old, wilted rose with a tattered black ribbon tied around it.  
"Interesting..." I said, pointing to the rose, "Someone gave me a rose like that too." I said, and he blushed. There was also an old letter folded up on the vanity. He opened it up and motioned for me to come to him, which I did as he began to read it aloud.

_"My Dearest Little Lotte,   
Please forgive me for putting this on you, but there is no other way to escape him. I only want us to be happy. I just wanted to say I love you, and I will be watching you perform as Aminta from Box 5. Do not be afraid, I will not let him take you from me. We will get through this Christine. I love you.  
Ever yours,  
Raoul"_

Charles looked up at me strangely.  
"I will not let him take you from me..." He repeated softly. _Who?_ I wondered, not even knowing who Raoul or Lotte or Christine was.  
"What is this?" I asked, motioning to the letter and he looked a bit lost.   
"Raoul is my Dad. Christine is...was...my mother. My father called her Little Lotte." He said, just above a whisper.  
"This is your mother's letter?" I asked, incredulously, and he nodded, still in a bit of shock. "Well, who is _he_?" I said, referring to the "he" that Charles's father had kept referring to in the letter. He shrugged.  
"I...I don't know." He replied, and folded the letter back up, tucking it into the inside pocket of his coat. He looked back at the picture of Carlotta from _Hannibal._ He stared at it for a long moment when suddenly, his eyes lit up.  
"What?" I asked, when he began to smile and he looked at me.  
"I know how to get rid of Benedetta!"


	10. Chapter 10

CHARLES

She was looking at me like I was crazy, but I was too overcome with excitement to care. I grabbed both of her hands and said,

"I am going to try out for lead tenor here!" I said, entirely satisfied with myself. She didn't respond, she just looked at me as if I were the most insane person she had ever laid eyes on.

"That's great Charles, but there's one small problem with that…" She said, and I pulled back.

"What?" I asked, seeing no problems.

"We already have a lead tenor." She said dryly, and I grinned again. It paid to have your father as the opera patron. I knew things even the chorus didn't know.

"Not anymore," I explained. "Dad told me this morning that Anselmo is transferring to the Rome opera to be with his wife. Auditions are next week."

"Oh…" She said, surprised. "I didn't know that." I looked around the room and still couldn't believe that my mother had used this dressing room before. Maybe even mere months before I was born. But this letter, it really perplexed me. It was a simple love note, but there were hidden meanings and mysteries beyond my knowledge in those few lines. _I will not let him take you from me…_Who? I'd always thought Mother and Dad had been childhood sweethearts. One word kept ringing through my mind. _Erik._ Did this have something to do with him? Was this why Dad was so secretive about Mother's past?

"Charles?" A small hand had come to rest on my forearm as I stared blankly at that huge mirror. I looked down to see Maddie staring up at me, concerned. Unable to help myself I smiled. She looked so innocent with her big sparkling hazel eyes and her pouty lips. _Friends, we're friends…_I reminded myself, pushing back the urge to kiss her. _She doesn't feel that way about you._

"Sorry Maddie, just thinking is all…" I replied and she nodded, understanding.

"It's that letter isn't it?" She said softly and I nodded my head to tell her it was.

"Why don't you just ask your father about it?" She offered and I smiled sadly.

"It wouldn't work…He won't tell me." I replied, knowing Dad didn't like to talk about that time in their lives.

"So you're serious about trying out then?" She asked, changing the subject.

"Yes, I am…" I said, grinning and she shook her head.

"You and about twenty other men who crave fame." She muttered, and I shrugged, turning toward the door and grabbing her hand.

"It's worth a shot." I said, leading her from the room and back down the halls. When we reached her room, I was sad that our day together had come to an end.

"Are you alright?" I asked, touching her shoulder as I remembered the scene in the storage room.

"Fine…" She replied, a smile playing at the corner of her lips. I sighed.

"Well, I suppose I should be getting back home…" I said, not wanting to leave.

"Yes, I suppose that's best…" She said, looking down. I lightly kissed her cheek, hoping she wouldn't feel how violently I was shaking, and she looked up at me, touching her fingertips to her cheek.

"Well, goodbye then." I said, starting to back away and she nodded.

"Goodbye Charles." She said in her calm voice and turned to go into her room. Just as she was about to close the door, I stepped in and stopped her.

"What is it Charles?" She asked, a bit surprised and confused. I gulped and smiled nervously.

"I um…do you want to go get something to eat by any chance?" I said so quickly I was afraid she hadn't understood by how she was looking at me. She had raised an eyebrow, but looked thoughtful.

"Well, I _am_ hungry." She admitted and shrugged. "Why not? Just let me get my money…" I put a hand up to stop her.

"No. My treat. Please…for putting up with my insanity." I said, trying to keep the mood light. For a moment, it looked like she was going to protest, but she obviously decided against it and said,

"Fair enough. You _are _daft, you know."

I led her to a small café that Gabe had told me about. She hesitated at the door of the restaurant, gripping my arm tightly.

"Is something the matter, Madeleine?" I asked her, and she looked up at me.

"No. Nothing…" She said quickly and I led her to a small table near the kitchen. Women whispered to their companions as we walked by, staring at Maddie as if she were a worthless piece of dirt. Maddie heard one girl say,

"Oh my, it's Charles de Chagny…but _what_ is he with?" I heard this and shot the woman a look of disgust and put my arm around Madeleine's shoulders. Stupid shallow pigs. For once, Maddie wasn't resisting me and clung to me, looking around in fright.

"Don't let those tarts get to you Maddie…" I soothed her, feeling her tremble. She looked up at me.

"What?" She asked, confused, and I wondered if we were worried about the same thing. I pulled her chair out for her and sat across from her. She was white as a sheet.

"Jesus, are you alright?" I asked her when suddenly a loud booming voice came from inside the kitchen.

"Girl, get those dishes cleaned…" Maddie's mouth dropped open in fright as the man emerged from the kitchen. A large older man, who looked like he thought he was God.

"Oh my God…" She said softly in terror. I grabbed her hand.

"What? What is it?" I asked, looking at him and she tried to breathe.

"It's him…" She said and I looked at him again.

"Who?"

"Dupont." She said and my mouth dropped open. Suddenly, rage filled me and I had the sudden urge to break his neck with my bare hands.

"Why didn't you tell me this was the place?" I asked, feeling like an ass.

"I-I don't know…" She said, "I thought maybe if I could face this place, I could forget." I rose, going to her and putting my hand out for her to take.

"Come on," I said, "We're getting the hell out of here and going to my house." She didn't argue and got up quickly, clinging to me again when someone tapped her on the shoulder.

" 'Scuse me, do I know you?" I spun around to see Dupont standing there, trying to see Maddie's face, but she shook her head, still facing the other way. He looked at me disdainfully as I said, thinking quickly,

"Excuse us sir, but my fiancée isn't feeling well at all…I must get her home." I heard a few women gasp when I said fiancée, including Madeleine. I gently guided her out and she looked up at me in horror.

"_Fiancée?" _She cried and I shrugged.

"I didn't want him to think you might be single, so he could assume he knew you and had a right to talk to you." I replied smoothly and she softened.

"Oh. Thanks…" She said and I shrugged again.

"Forget about it, let's go to my house…I don't like to see Dad eating alone anyways." I replied and we went back to the opera to get a cab. I helped her in and we were off.

After I paid the driver, we went into the house just as the sun was starting to set.

"Dad! We've got company!" I said, a little shocked by how quiet the house was. "Therese? Aunt Laney? _Anyone?_" Maddie looked up at me, a bit worried as I took her hand and led her up to Dad's study. Surely he wasn't still in there. I opened the door and gasped when I saw him slumped over the desk, unconscious, still holding the bottle of brandy in one hand and his empty glass in the other.

"Oh my God. Dad!" I said, running to him and motioning for Madeleine to help me get him up. We each draped on of his arms around our shoulders and helped him to his feet as he groaned drunkenly. He smelled of brandy and tobacco, which meant he must have been at his pipe as he always was when he was fretting.

After a bit of a struggle we got him to his room and a flopped onto the bed, pulling Maddie down with him as she let out a shriek.

"Christine, you look so lovely tonight…" He mumbled before passing out completely as I helped Maddie up.

"I'm sorry," I said, taking off his shoes and swinging his feet up onto the bed, "I've only seen him like this once and that was when Mother died." I apologized to her and she smiled.

"That's alright. Poor man…he must be so lonely without her." She sighed and I looked at him, smiling slightly in his sleep. In the state he was in, I had no doubt, he'd thought Madeleine was my mother.

She looked around the bedroom and gasped when she saw Mother's portrait.

"What's the matter?" I asked, afraid to hear the answer and she pointed to the painting.

"That…that's me!" She cried, and I laughed.

"No, that's my mother, Christine. I do see the resemblance though…" I said, smiling and she looked at me, confused.

"The painting of her at the opera was not as detailed as this, but this is unbelievable!" She cried, "The only difference is our eye color." I nodded.

"I suppose from time to time, people are born with the same general bone structure as another…come on," I said, taking her arm, "Let's go find something to eat!" She took one last look at the painting, then at Dad before I shut the door behind us.


	11. Chapter 11

MADDIE

"Are you sure your father is alright?" I asked Charles as we sat across from each other in his kitchen, eating.  
"He'll be fine...he's just had a little too much to drink." He replied, looking a little sad, but smiling anyway. We sat in silence for a few minutes until he suddenly said,  
"So are you going to the masquerade?" I hadn't even thought about it. The managers threw a theme party every New Year's Eve, but I never attended. Why would I? It was mostly high society and I wasn't. Deirdre, of course, went every year because of her mother and grandmother, not to mention the fact that her father was a wealthy lawyer.  
"I...uh...hadn't planned on it..." I answered, taking a sip of the wine he'd gotten from the cupboard. I wasn't a big drinker, but today had been an emotional whirlwind.

He looked a bit disappointed.  
"Oh." He said, quietly, biting into a piece of bread.  
"Are you?" I asked him, and he shrugged.  
"I really don't know...it depends."  
"On what?" I asked him, and he winked at me.  
"You." He answered with half a smile as my mouth dropped open and I began to stutter.  
"Me? But I...I don't..." He laughed, interrupting my unintelligible blabbering. I couldn't help it, as my cheeks turned hot, I laughed at myself.  
"I was only kidding, but Maddie, I do wish you would come...everyone is going...Deirdre, Gabe, my cousins are moving here before Christmas..." I had to admit, I loved his crowd of friends and family, but the thought of attending a party, a ball no less, frightened the hell out of me to be honest.

"I'd like to but...um...I don't have anything to wear..." I said, dumbly looking down into my wine. It was true. I didn't own anything but worn old dresses that girls in the ballet had tired of and given to me. I couldn't remember the last time I'd bought something new. Two years ago, maybe. A new corset. Most girls got a new one every few months. Charles looked amused.  
"Oh no..." He joked, "You can never ever attend a ball because you have nothing to wear..." I glared at him and he feigned terror.  
"Come with me." He got up and took my hand, pulling me from my seat and upstairs into a small unused bedroom.  
"This is a guest room. Mother, used the closet as a storage because she couldn't bear to throw her old gowns away." He said, motioning toward the closet. I didn't follow where he was going with this tangent.  
"So...what does this have to do with anything?" I asked him, a bit annoyed and he grinned.

"You can't go to the ball because you have nothing to wear...my father has been trying to find someone to give these gowns to because, obviously Mother is no longer here to wear them and they are just taking up space now." I backed away a bit, speechless.  
"What?" I said, thinking I must have heard wrong.  
"I want you to pick out _any_ dress you'd like and wear it to the masked ball." He replied, satisfied with my reaction.  
"Why are you doing this Charles? I still won't sleep with you..." I said, even though I knew he wasn't looking for a roll in the hay.

"Maddie, you deserve to have a great night just like anyone else. I know you've had a rough life, but don't you think it's time to start making some great memories?" He was so sincere I could have cried. I knew then that I had to go to the ball and I nodded slightly, smiling a bit. He opened the closet and gestured for me to go into it. I gasped when I peered into it. The closet was just about as big as my room at the opera! Charles laughed when he saw my face and I gasped again when I saw how many gowns were in that closet.  
"I don't even know where to start..." I said, feeling small. He patted my head and said,  
"I shall be in the kitchen, just pick any dress you'd like and take it." I felt very invasive as I rifled through the gowns. Charles's mother had gowns in every color from gold to lavender to ecru.

Many of them were a bit extravagant for my taste and I'd all but lost hope until I came to the last dress in the row. It had almost been hidden by the huge skirt of a maroon gown, but the light pink had caught my eye. I blew a bit of dust off of it as I took it from the row and held it against myself. I lost my breath for a moment. It was an off the shoulder gown with delicate lace and small roses around the neckline and a silk pink rose at the waist. The back had a flowing lovely train with three elegant folds of the beautiful fabric tied back. Tucked into the neckline were a pair of white gloves with a beautiful embroidered design on them, and to my extreme surprise a silver mask with a handle. I couldn't believe it. It was almost as if I had been drawn to that dress inexplicably and what a strange coincidence that someone had obviously worn it to a masked ball before.

"Did you find anything?" Charles's voice came, startling me as I spun around facing him, still holding the dress to myself. A smile played at his lips. "So you did...it's perfect." He said, satisfied with himself.  
"Almost _too_ perfect...did you plan this?" I asked him suspiciously and he shook his head.  
"I swear I didn't. It must be fate." He said, winking at me and most likely remembering I had said fate was overrated. I snorted.  
"Yes fate." I said, nudging him out of my way and pretending to brush him off as I left the closet, but I wasn't so sure anymore. In a span of four hours, too much had happened.  
"Come on Charles," I said, walking back toward the kitchen, "I need a drink."

I must have drunk too much for I found myself giggling at everything Charles said. He watched me, half drunk himself, half amused as I leaned on him in his sitting room as the hours crawled by.  
"Do you want to dance?" He asked, his eyes twinkling in the firelight.  
"But...there isn't any music silly Charles!" I giggled. It was so strange. I knew I was being ridiculous, but it was like I was watching myself act stupid from across the room and I couldn't do a damn thing about it. He smiled in an adorable giddy way and extended his hand to me.  
"So what? Use your imagination silly girl!" He said, pulling me up and against him. Suddenly my head felt very heavy and I leaned it against his chest, for the first time realizing how much taller he was than I.

He whirled me around the room, making me dizzy with delight as we laughed so hard our sides hurt. He dipped me and stumbled as he did, making us both fall to the floor, still laughing. He stopped laughing, but never lost his smile as he looked into my eyes with those silvery green eyes of his. Again, they seemed to glow yellow in the firelight and I couldn't take my eyes off of them. I pouted my lips and tilted my head up toward him only to find myself saying,  
"Charles, you can kiss me if you want..." He drew back, suddenly sobering.  
"What?"  
"Kiss me Charles..." I whispered, reaching for him, but he stood, picking me up with him. I truly did want him in that moment, in my drunken way of thinking.

"Madeleine," He said, using my full name sternly, "As much as I'd like that, I can't. I can't take advantage of you like this..." When he said that, my eyes snapped open and the room came into focus. What the hell was I doing? Two glasses of wine and I was clay in his perfectly shaped hands? I sank down onto the sofa and buried my head in my hands.  
"Oh my God, Charles, I am so sorry..." I said, completely ashamed of myself and my stupidity. He sat beside me and patted my back gently.  
"Maddie...it's fine, but I am going to take you back to the opera now..." He said sweetly as I nodded. I picked up the gown and we got into his carriage as he drove and we sat in silence. I felt so horrible about the way I had thrown myself at him, not to mention my head was now beginning to throb as the drunkenness wore off.

He walked me to my room and I smiled at him as I opened the door.  
"Thank you Charles..." I said leaning up to kiss his cheek softly. He repeated the gesture and we suddenly found our faces less than an inch apart. Realizing this, we both quickly moved back awkwardly as I said,  
"Well...I should get ready for bed...it's been a long day and I have rehearsal in the morning..." I said uncomfortably and he nodded.  
"I better go see how Dad's doing..." He replied and I nodded too, awkwardly.  
"Well...goodnight Charles...and thank you from the bottom of my heart for lending me your mother's gown..."

He smiled at this and bowed extravagantly.  
"My pleasure m'lady...sweet dreams." He said, and kissed my hand as I rolled my eyes, but laughed anyway. As I made to move into the room, he still held onto my hand.  
"What now?" I asked with a laugh and he suddenly looked serious and unsure of whether he should say or not. Sighing he said,  
"Who is Chloe?" I knew by this he had seen my locket and I breathed deeply, thinking of it. Any other time I would have been angry that he had looked at my personal possession, but I felt surprisingly unaffected by it and sighed.  
"Chloe was my mother...she died when I was six." I said and a sad expression came over his face.  
"I'm sorry Maddie..." He said, and I shrugged.  
"Life goes on. I've moved past it." I said, fighting the inevitable tears that always came and he patted my cheek.  
"Goodnight Madeleine."  
"Goodnight Charles."


	12. Chapter 12

CHARLES

"Feeling better?" I asked Dad the next morning as he padded into the kitchen in his robe and slippers, rubbing his head. I bit back a grin as I sipped my coffee as I read the paper.  
"You certainly are chipper this morning…" He said, opening a cupboard and obviously looking for some aspirin.  
"Second cupboard on the left." I said, unable to hide a smirk. He raised an eyebrow at me and poured himself a cup of coffee, taking the aspirin without water. As he sat at the table, I pushed a plate of toast that Therese had made earlier. He waved it away, as if the thought of food disgusted him, which I have no doubt, it did.

He sat at the table and picked up a piece of the paper that I wasn't reading.  
"How did your day with Mademoiselle Denton go?" He asked and I looked up from the morning headlines.  
"Good…she is surprisingly exceptional. A natural talent…she will go far." I cleared my throat, trying to find the words to tell him what I had planned to do.  
"Dad?" I said tentatively and without looking up from the paper he simply responded,  
"Mmm?" I ran a hand through my thick dark hair and said,  
"I um…I have to tell you something…" He set the paper down, looking at me suspiciously.  
"I am afraid to ask." He murmured as I took a deep breath.

"The opera is putting on _Hannibal_ and as you know Anselmo has gone to Rome." I said quickly. Dad nodded, eyeing me.  
"Well…I remembered what you said…you know about being a musician…" His eyes lit up a bit, but he remained firm.  
"Yes Charles…just get on with it…" He said, and I knew I needed to get to the point.  
"I want to audition for leading tenor…" I said all in one breath and his eyes lit up.  
"Leading tenor? A singer? You are a bit young, but I don't think that will…" He stopped suddenly, "Charles, does this have anything to do with the Denton girl?" I held my breath.  
"No…well yes but…it's mostly for Mother. She'd so hoped I would join the opera one day…" I said, knowing he couldn't resist when I threw Mother into the protest.

He shook his head, involuntarily grinning.  
"You are a conniving devil Charles de Chagny." Dad said with a small sad gleam in his eye. He combed his light hair with his fingers and sipped at his coffee again. I still watched him, waiting for a response. He looked up from the paper at me again, noticing I was watching him. He even looked a bit intimidated by the way I was looking at him.  
"What?" He asked, and I smiled.  
"So is that alright then?" I asked him and he turned serious.  
"Charles, you are twenty-five years old. You don't need my permission to choose a career. You know I will support whatever you do. Just do me a favor and don't go crazy on me, alright?" I frowned in confusion.  
"Why would I do that?" I asked and Dad shrugged, muttering,  
"I really don't know. Opera seems to do that to men. Opera and women." He shook his head and went back to reading the obituaries as he did every day as if he was desperately looking for someone.

I went over some designs for a new church outside of Paris for a few hours before I pulled on long coat and headed back over to the opera as it was beginning to snow. I had been here more times in one week than I came in one year before my birthday. I was greeted by the sound of Aunt Meg coaching the ballerinas onstage, so I decided to sit at the back of the theater and watch the rehearsal to wait for Maddie.  
"Deirdre, you are spinning too fast, Madeleine, you are half a count behind." The ballerinas and two male dancers were working on the slave dance from _Hannibal._  
"Let's try it again from the top of the dance…" Aunt Meg said with her long blonde hair tied back, as the ballerinas rose and adjusted the chains around their wrists.

I watched Madeleine from the shadows in back of the theater and couldn't help admiring her grace and beauty. Every move she made just flowed beautifully into the next and all of the other ballerinas seemed to disappear while Maddie just danced alone, when in reality, she was cuffed between the redhead that Gabe had asked to dance at the gala for _Faust_ and Deirdre. As I watched her I wanted nothing more than to disrupt the rehearsal and kiss her until Aunt Meg had to beat me off of her with a pointe shoe. This was a dream that would never come true, for she didn't want me.

Who was to say I was good enough for her anyway? She'd been hurt and survived so many things, and I had taken the things that were dear to me for granted. I'd realized this last night when she'd admitted she had nothing to wear to the masquerade. Everything in my life was worth it when I saw her face as she held the pink gown to her small body and tried to hide her excitement. It was the moment I knew that I would do anything and everything to make her happy, even if only as her friend. I wasn't in love with her, at least I didn't think so, but in the short time I had known her, I had come to idolize her. Not as a goddess or anything, but as a person. A human being with feelings and regrets.

Suddenly an obviously flimsy piece of the set came tumbling down and chaos ensued. The ballerinas started running around frantically, stumbling over each other as Aunt Meg tried to calm them down. Maddie got frustrated and removed the cuffs from her arms as Deirdre fell onto her. The little redheaded girl cried,  
"It's happening! The ghost is back!" Aunt Meg rubbed her temples, frustrated as she yelled,  
"Nonsense! Back in line this instant! Deirdre! Madeleine! Get up!"  
"But Madame Bennett…the ghost…"  
"Does not exist." Aunt Meg finished for the girl and I couldn't hold back a laugh. Almost every single girl onstage gasped as I stood up and came out from the shadows, still wearing my long coat. One little dark haired girl screamed when she saw me emerge.

"The ghost!" She cried, pointing at me and I felt my face heat up. Aunt Meg whirled around and shrieked when she saw me, but realized who I was and breathed.  
"I'm afraid not." I said, winking at the dark haired girl who fainted.  
"Charles de Chagny, don't you ever sneak up like that again!" Aunt Meg said, coming to kiss me on the cheek and I laughed.  
"I didn't _sneak._ If you silly girls weren't so superstitious…I've been sitting in the back row for almost ten minutes now." Out of the corner of my eye I could see Maddie rolling her eyes.  
"And what brings you here disrupting my rehearsal young man?" Aunt Meg said, with a twinkle in her eye.  
"Well, while the thought of scaring the daylights out of all you lovely ladies has its appeal, I am here to see Madeleine. After rehearsal of course." I replied and a couple of the ballerinas made noises, teasing Maddie, who had gone completely red.

"I'll just be in the front row…" I said, winking at the little dark haired girl who'd managed to pick herself up, and she fainted again. Aunt Meg laughed, shaking her head and said,  
"Tell you what ladies and gentleman," She said referring to the two males, "Let's call it a day. There's only a few minutes left anyway." As Maddie went to change, Aunt Meg turned to me and said,  
"You're quite taken with her…aren't you?" I nodded and said,  
"Actually I am helping her out with her singing." Aunt Meg smiled.  
"That's so nice-her _what?_" She asked, realizing what I'd said.  
"Singing," I repeated, "She's very talented." Whatever shock Aunt Meg had shown before, she was doing a damn good job of hiding it now.  
"She's a good girl…"Aunt Meg agreed, "Just be careful Charles." She said, and walked away. Why did everyone keep saying that?

Madeleine appeared wearing an older green dress. She had a stern look on her face but an amused look in her eyes.  
"The girls are convinced that you are the opera ghost resurrected." She said, rolling her eyes and I chuckled.  
"That's a good reputation to get the week before I audition for leading tenor." She snorted.  
"Your insanity knows no limits…" she muttered dryly as I led her back into the old storage room, moving to light the candle again. She warmed up quickly as I produced yet again, the aria from Act three of _Hannibal._ She groaned.  
"Charles, there is no chance of me playing Elissa…none. I've never even sung a solo much less a leading role." I sighed.

"Madeleine, this isn't about you playing Elissa or Margarita or whomever. This is about learning something and knowing it inside out, backwards and forwards. This is about portraying the true meaning and passion behind the music, whether it be for an audience of thousands or an audience of one." I explained and she seemed to understand where I was going.  
"Alright Charles," She said calmly, "I'm ready."


	13. Chapter 13

MADDIE

I woke up the following Thursday with a start, when Deirdre burst into my room still in her nightclothes.

"Charles is here to audition for leading tenor!" She cried, her long blonde hair still messed from sleeping. I opened my eyes, irritated by being woken up on my one day a week off of early morning rehearsals.

"I know, Didi…" I mumbled, turning the other way and putting the pillow over my head. The next thing I knew, she had jumped on the bed and was beating me with the other pillow.

"Get up silly! We have to go watch, and why didn't you tell me?" She exclaimed and I sighed, sitting up and hitting her with the pillow.

"I didn't tell you because it's none of my business." I said, wiping the sleep from my eyes. She eyed me for a moment before smirking.

"You like him don't you?" That got my attention.

"Yes, I like him." I answered truthfully. He was a very nice man, why wouldn't I like him? Apparently she meant it the other way and started making kissing noises.

"You silly tart," I said, unable to hold back a laugh, "I _like _him. I don't want to bear his children for God's sake!" She looked at me suspiciously for a moment before hitting me with the pillow once more and flouncing out of the room giggling. I shook my head, wondering if I should go back to sleep, but I was already awake and I had to admit, I wanted to watch Charles audition. I'd never actually heard _him_ sing in the couple weeks we had been practicing together. I got up from the bed and chose one of my six dresses to wear, smiling when I saw the pink satin gown I would be wearing on New Year's Eve. I pulled my curls back into a ribbon and washed my face quickly before heading out into the theater.

As I was looking for Didi I heard someone say,

"Mademoiselle Denton!" I turned to see Charles's father waving at me with a kind smile. I genuinely liked this man and waved back, moving to meet him in the first few rows.

"How are you Monsieur le Vicomte?" I said, shaking his hand and remembering the night he had thought I was his wife. He laughed.

"You can call me Raoul…or Monsieur de Chagny if you are more comfortable." He said, and gestured for me to sit beside him, which I did.

"Raoul…" I repeated and he nodded. I pointed to myself and said, "Maddie or Madeleine if you prefer." Again he nodded, looking over to where Charles and four other men were talking to the managers.

"It's nice to see so much support for Charles. He's really quite taken with you, you know." I felt my eyes widen as I looked at him.

"What do you mean, _taken?_" I asked, looking at Charles who waved at us. Raoul looked at me, smiling,

"I only mean that he has taken a liking to you. He really has a lot of faith in you Maddie. It's like you've given him a better reason to get up everyday." I stared at Charles's father like an idiot. Me? Charles woke up every day because of me? It didn't make any sense. Raoul laughed.

"My wife used to get that expression on her face when she was nervous or confused, God rest her soul." I smiled sadly at him.

"I'm so sorry you lost her." I replied and he attempted to smile.

"We always hoped for a daughter…" He said, looking at me in the saddest way, I felt a lump come into my throat. Before we could say anything else, M. Firmin announced that auditions would begin as the music director, M. Evans joined them.

Charles caught my eye and winked at me, to which I rolled my eyes at him. The first man, an older gentleman, stepped up and began to sing one of the songs Hannibal sang in the first act. He was very good but when it came to the part in the song with higher notes, his voice cracked. The next two were pretty much the same. Good, but when the high notes came, they couldn't quite reach them. The fourth man was actually very good. He hit most of the notes with ease and although his performance was a bit bland, he could have played the part nicely. Finally, Charles stepped up with his usual confident look on his face. He gave me one last look before beginning the song. I cannot even begin to explain the sound that came from him. It was as if time stood still and the earth and heavens all paused to listen to the voice that came from this man. I looked over at the Vicomte and he had such a look of pride on his face, I couldn't help but smile and pat his arm. Charles hit the highest note with such passion I could have died happily, having heard his voice.

When he had finished, I stole a glance at M. Firmin and M. Andre. Their mouths had dropped open and they were staring at the young man in shock. Charles simply stood calmly with a small proud smile on his handsome face and his hands behind his back. M. Firmin cleared his throat.

"Thank you gentlemen…if you would excuse us for half an hour, we will let you know." The two men made their way back into their office to discuss the auditions while Charles walked over to Raoul and I.

"How did I do?" He said with a half smile. I tried to remain aloof.

"Decent." I said, as if I didn't care at all and he grinned, elbowing me.

"I'll take that…" He said, looking at his father expectantly.

"Charles, I wish your mother could have been here." He said, quickly giving Charles a hug.

Charles slid an arm around my shoulders smoothly and I smoothly turned out of his hold, laughing and trying to hide my alarm as he laughed like I was joking. Raoul's words rang through my head. _He's really quite taken with you, you know._ I could not allow myself to feel that way for anyone. Especially the son of a viscount, who could have had any woman in the world, and would not think twice of a ballet rat. It could only end in heartbreak. I just didn't think I could commit myself to any type of romantic relationship because every time I thought of it, the memories of lying on the kitchen floor in the café as my childhood was ripped from me violently. Every time I thought of being with someone, Louis Dupont's face clouded my mind.

"Maddie? Madeleine?" Charles voice brought me back to the real world. I looked up to see he and Raoul staring at me.

"You alright?" Charles asked me and I nodded.

"Fine, fine…just tired is all." He patted my back supportively.

"Maybe we shouldn't practice today." He said, noticing the circles under my eyes.

"No," I shook my head, "It's fine…I'll be alright." He smiled, brushing a curl from my eye.

"I appreciate you dedication Maddie, but I want you to be healthy. Perhaps you could just come over for dinner tonight." He replied, looking to his father who nodded his approval.

"I'd like that but…" I started, but before I could finish, M. Andre, M. Evans and M. Firmin had come back into the room.

"Gentlemen, if you would please go back onstage." M. Andre, said carrying a folder filled with papers, obviously sheet music. M. Firmin stood to announce,

"We will be letting three of you go right now…" He took a slip of paper from M. Evans and read aloud,

"Randolph Kerrington, Jacques Champoux and Pedro Cruz we'd like to thank you for auditioning and we hope you will audition with us again in the future." They all looked a bit disappointed, but left quickly leaving Charles and the man who had sung just before him onstage. M. Evans now stood and, unthinking, I grabbed Raoul's arm nervously making him chuckle.

"Monsieur Dorgan, we would like to offer you a secondary role in _Hannibal._ Monsieur de Chagny, we are please to announce that you have won the role of leading tenor, and we will need you to sign a contract if you please.

Charles held in his excitement for he shook Monsieur Dorgan's hand. Raoul was beaming from ear to ear.

"They would have been so proud." He said, and I looked at him confused.

"Who would have?" I asked and he looked at me suddenly, startled as if I weren't supposed to hear.

"Charles's mother." He said, smiling.

"But…you said _they _would have been so proud." I replied and he brought his hand to his mouth.

"I did, didn't I? I must be getting old." He laughed, patting my hand. I smiled, but didn't really know what to think at the moment. I didn't have time to think since Charles came over and swept me up laughing.

"We did it, Maddie!" He cried happily and for the first time since I met him I looked at his face, _really_ looked. I had to look away quickly though because I found myself feeling things that the other girls talked about when they discussed men.

"No, you did it Charles…" I said, quietly and as he set me down our cheeks brushed together and I closed my eyes for a moment, feeling the warmth from his face. Panic fluttered through me. I looked from Charles to Raoul and back to Charles again. _Oh God, I have to get away from him. Now._

"I'm sorry, I don't feel well…" I said, not being far from the truth and gave them an apologetic look as I fled back to my room.


	14. Chapter 14

CHARLES

_December 18, 1906_

_She ran from me. I don't understand. She hasn't spoken to me in days, except at our lessons. I keep going over it in my head, but I can't figure out what I've done to make her angry or upset. Christmas is in a week and Hannibal opens tonight. I've got to make things right. _

"Stay still Charles!" The costume lady, Regina, laughed as she sewed a small rip in my _Hannibal _costume. I stared at myself in the mirror, unable to hold back a smirk. The costume was ridiculous, mimicking a Roman soldier.

"You will be a very dashing Hannibal!" She said with a grin, and I shook my head.

"I feel like a clown…" I muttered, cursing the horrid makeup on my face. She patted my cheek.

"This is opera darling, it wasn't meant to be subtle." With that she laughed again and walked away. I looked in the mirror again. Horrid. I took a rag and wet it quickly, wiping off most of the makeup and redoing it so that it made me look human and not like someone's rag doll. They'd given me the old dressing room at the end of the hall, which I didn't mind because Mother had used this room and I felt honored to be the next person to inhabit it.

I took the helmet off and just looked around for a moment. That mirror was mesmerizing. I had to wonder how the decorators had gotten it through the door since it was taller and wider than the doorway. I frowned when I noticed there was a smudge of makeup on it and took the rag I had cleaned my face with to wipe the mirror, gently balancing my fingertips on the glass. As I brought my other hand to the glass I heard a click, and the mirror pulled back a bit before I noticed there was an open slit on the left side.

"What in the hell…?" I said to myself, sliding my fingers into the slit and to my surprise, it slid open even more. I pushed it all the way open and stared in wonder at what seemed to be a dark tunnel. Something caught my eye. An old silk rose lying on the floor. I picked it up, examining it until I heard a knock at the door.

"Charles, they're ready for you!" I heard Aunt Meg say.

"Be right out!" I called, trying to catch my breath. I stepped out of the passageway and slid the glass back into its place as it clicked shut. I took one last look at myself in that huge mirror and decided to come back to it another time. M. Evans hated when people were tardy. In the weeks leading up to opening night, I had tried to wear Benedetta down, making comments about her age and her talent, in hopes she would get the hint and leave, but instead, she seemed to think I fancied her, making for quite the uncomfortable love scenes. The white dress meant for Elissa didn't quite work on her and they had to create a whole new design, taking the essence away from the character's beauty and grace.

Today I was going to try a new tactic and hide her headpiece. She was one of those women whose hair just wasn't attractive in the least and wore a wig religiously or a hat. Before making my way onto the stage, I snuck quietly into her dressing room and found the headpiece, making my way back to the door until I heard,

"Charles! Did you come to see me?" I froze, dead in my tracks and turned to see her standing there in her under garments. I could have been sick.

"Um…Yes. I just wanted to wish you luck, but I can see you're busy so…good luck!" I reached for the door and she grabbed my arm.

"I am never too busy for you Charles." She said, batting her eyelashes. I cleared my throat nervously, still hiding the headpiece behind my back.

"Well, I really have to go…uh…see you down there!" I said and she looked slowly from my feet to my head and back down again. I threw the door open, dropping the headpiece and ran for my life.

The ballerinas were hard at work when I stepped into the theater. I tried to catch Maddie's eye, but she made it a point not to look at me. Deirdre saw me and started laughing at my costume until Aunt Meg gave her a stern look and told them to relax for a few moments. M. Firmin and M. Andre walked up and joined me.

"_Hannibal_ has always been one of my favorites, don't you think so Gene?" Firmin asked his partner, who nodded.

"Delightful." The smaller man replied as Oliver Dorgan, the young man who had auditioned with me, appeared on stage in his own costume. To my surprise, he walked over to Maddie and tried to start a conversation with her. Every muscle in my body tensed as he spoke to her. I didn't trust him, especially since he had a reputation for going through women as one changes clothes. A new one every night. As she smiled politely at him and laughed, I felt fire rush through my veins.

So this was what jealousy felt like. I watched him touch her shoulder, her arm, her cheek and began to grind my teeth together. The creep. She would just be another of his conquests. I couldn't take it anymore as I stormed onto the stage to break up this little trap. Maybe a bit possessively, I walked up behind Maddie and put my arm around her as she snapped around to look at me.

"Chagny!" Oliver cried, smiling, "Good of you to join us! _Maddie_ and I were just discussing dinner plans." I glared at him.

"Her name is _Madeleine._" I said, icily, irked with his cocky attitude. Maddie looked up at me a bit shocked and angry.

"You aren't the only person who calls me Maddie you know." She said roughly, pulling out of my arm. "Oliver and I are friends."

I looked at Oliver, who nodded satisfied.

"See, Chagny? We're _friends_." He said and winked at me. I could have killed him right there, but I held in my anger.

"Friends…" I said, eyeing him, "Keep it that way." I stated and Madeleine's eyes shot fire at me.

"How dare you order people around when it comes to me? Charles de Chagny, you are a bastard!" She looked at Oliver, touching his arm. "I will see you after the show." She said, glaring at me and returning to the ballet. Oliver patted my back.

"Pretty little thing, isn't she?" He said, examining her from behind. I grabbed him by his collar and pushed him up against the wall.

"Don't you try anything with her or I swear to God…" I warned him and he grinned.

"You really like her, don't you?" He said with a sly look on his face, "Are you two going at it? Is she your little whore?" He asked me and I punched him in the face.

"Don't ever refer to her that way again!" I said and left him on the ground, holding his cheek, but still looking satisfied.

"Don't worry Chagny! I'll take _extra _special care of her for you!"

I walked straight onto the stage in the middle of the ballet and grabbed Madeleine, pulling her aside.

"What in the hell do you think you're doing?" She cried at me, as the other ballerinas stopped to watch. Aunt Meg looked a bit furious and I knew I would be reprimanded after this, but right now I didn't care.

"We have to talk…" I said, desperately and she tried to pull away from me, but I held fast to her hand.

"No we do not." She shot at me and I said,

"Dorgan is a womanizer…he only wants to hurt you." She looked at Oliver, who was now holding his cheek as if he were dying, and ran to him.

"Charles, what have you done? I am an adult, God damn you! I can take care of myself!"

"But I…"

"Get the hell away from me, Charles!" She cried, pushing past me and once again rejoined the _corps de ballet. _

The rest of rehearsal went on without a hitch. I sang my part, Benedetta sang hers, the ballet went flawlessly. I tried to get Maddie's attention to apologize to her, but she wouldn't even acknowledge my existence. I just didn't understand. How did men like Dorgan, who only wanted a night in bed, get any woman they wanted? I'd never been anything but respectful with her and it still wasn't good enough. Two could play at this game. After rehearsal ended, I asked Bella, the redheaded ballerina, to accompany me to the gala after the show. Bella, being the shallow ballet tart she was, of course accepted, running to gloat to the other ballerinas as soon as the invitation was offered. I saw Maddie give me an icy look, but I didn't give her the satisfaction of acknowledging it.

After the show, at the party, Maddie held the arm of Oliver Dorgan as Bella Stroud held mine. I only looked at Bella the entire night, feeling the heat and fury of those hazel eyes on me. I did manage to steal a few glances at her out of the corner of my eye and noticed that Dorgan had slid his had just below her waist as they danced a bit. She looked a bit uncomfortable, but never stopped smiling at him. When his hand moved to her rear for a moment, I was ready to storm between them, but Bella was tugging at my arm and whining for me to dance with her. I tried to dance us closer to hear what garbage Dorgan was saying to her, but they suddenly stopped and disappeared through the crowd. As I searched through the crowd, Bella said,

"I know you fancy Maddie, but you need a woman who can give you what you need. Someone like me…" She said, pulling her gown down a bit to reveal more cleavage, and suddenly I pitied this girl.

"Bella," I said, gently pulling up her sleeves, "You don't have to offer yourself to someone to make them like you. And what I need is to go home and sleep. I suggest you do the same." I kissed her cheek softly and left her standing there stunned, only wanting to go home and bury my head in my pillow. I hailed a cab and got in as snow began to fall, pulling my coat on. When I walked in, Dad was in his study, paying bills.

"How did it go?" He asked, not having been there tonight.

"It was…something…" I muttered and walked up the stairs into my room. I changed into my sleepwear which was really just a pair of cotton pants. I sat at my desk, going over a few of my blueprints, before heading down to the kitchen for a glass of water. Dad came into the kitchen, eyeing me.

"Why are you home so early?" He asked, sitting at the table.

I joined him, setting my glass down.

"Long story short…I've ruined everything with Maddie." I said, running a hand through my hair.

"Tell me about it…" Dad said, supportively and I quickly told him what had happened.

"Charles," He said, "I know you were just trying to protect her, but you have no right to give your opinion. You are not her husband, her fiancée. Nothing. Only her friend." I nodded bitterly.

"I know Dad, and now I don't even think I am her friend. She hates me." I took a sip of water and put my head in my hand.

"She doesn't hate you Charles. She just needs to find her own way." He said, patting my hand.

"I guess you're right Dad." I said and we both jumped as there was a sharp rapping at the front door.

"I'll get it…" I said and he nodded, getting up to return to his study. I walked over to the door, wondering who would be here so late. As I opened it, I nearly jumped out of my skin when I saw Madeleine standing there, shivering in the cold, her cheeks stained with tears. She wore no coat or cloak and still had the short sleeved dress she'd worn that night. The snow had begun to fall heavily, her curls wet and stuck to her face.

"Madeleine…" I said, pulling her into the foyer, "What are you doing here?"

Her lip quivered as she looked at me like a lost child and fell against me, whispering,

"_You were right."_


	15. Chapter 15

MADDIE

"Madeleine...what happened?" Charles asked, surprised and putting his arms hesitantly around my shivering body. I closed my eyes against his bare chest, trying to block out what had happened just a little earlier as he led me into the kitchen. Oliver had been so sweet, listening to me intently when we talked, holding my hand. We danced and laughed a bit, until he said,  
"Do you want to go somewhere quiet?" I nodded at him and he led me back toward the dormitories. We ended up in front of my room as we discussed the show and how well everyone had done.  
"I think Benedetta was great as Elissa...and Charles...well he is always wonderful." I'd said, nodding a bit uncomfortably and noting that we were the only people back here.  
"Yes, Chagny was bearable I suppose..." He said, and this surprised me a bit because it was the first time I'd heard a hint of arrogance in his voice.

Suddenly he was close to my face and I was against my door.  
"You're a very beautiful girl, Maddie." He said, smiling and I looked away uncomfortably, but said,  
"Thank you." I could feel his breath on my face as I gripped my doorknob. Something wasn't right here. He suddenly pressed his lips onto mine violently and began clawing at my dress as I opened my door and we went flying into my room.  
"Oliver!" I cried as I tripped and fell onto my bed. He wasn't far behind as he dove at me and began kissing my neck. Using my foot, I pushed him off of me and onto the floor with all of my might.  
"Stop!" I screamed and he looked up at me angrily.

"What did I do?" He asked, reddening, and I tried to pull myself together.  
"I don't want this Oliver! We're friends!" I said, furious now. He stood to his feet.  
"Oh, I see. So just because you're Chagny's little whore, means you can't give someone else a go?" He said and I stopped, stunned.  
"Charles?" I said, completely in shock. He snorted at me.  
"Oh please...don't think no one notices how you look at each other...I'll bet I'm twice the man he is!" He said, pointing to his groin and I cringed.  
"Why you two-faced son of a..."  
"You were practically begging me for this all night!" He said, getting back into my face and trying to kiss me. I pushed his face away with my hand, digging my nails into his cheek.

"I'll bet you're not half the man Charles is!" I said, and with that I kicked him where it hurt the most, and he cried out falling back to the floor.  
"You little bitch!" He cried, holding himself, "Do you honestly think any man will ever respect you? You will never be anything but someone's whore!" I started for the door, tears burning my eyes because I knew it was true. The daughter of a prostitute, an orphan who would never be anything but second best to anyone. An easy conquest. Maybe I should just accept it and face my fate. I would never be anything more than my mother was.  
"Maybe you're right." I said, softly at the door, and began to leave but suddenly I was pulled down by my hair and Oliver pinned me down to the ground.  
"You think you're special, do you? You think you can just walk away from me?" He shot at me and I struggled beneath him as he tried to kiss me again. Suddenly, I growled from deep within my throat and rage blinded me as I spit into his face. He stared at me for a moment and I thought he was going to leave me be until suddenly his fist met my cheek and everything went black. When I came to, he was gone and I was in a heap on the ground. I ran blindly through the opera, looking for Charles. I scanned the ballroom, and unthinking I ran out the doors and through the streets of Paris as I had the night I'd come to the opera. I held my throbbing cheek in my hand as snow pelted my face and shoulders. Finally, I came to the gates of the Chagny estate, banging on the door, craving warmth and forgiveness. The memory of how I'd treated Charles earlier kept running through my mind. When he opened the door, I couldn't believe how relieved I was to see him and fell onto him.

Raoul joined us in the kitchen as I haltingly recounted what had happened and Charles's lips became pursed tighter and tighter together. He held my hand tightly as I struggled not to cry. Raoul paled at the sight of my face and ran a gentle fingertip across my cheek as he called for someone named Therese. A few moments later an older woman came in wearing a dressing gown and a night cap.  
"What in the name of...oh dear." She said, when she saw me. Instantly, she walked to the ice box and took out a few cubes. "Charles love, get me a clean rag." She ordered and he quickly went to a small cupboard and took one out. Therese then wrapped the ice in the rag and gently held it against my cheek, holding me in a motherly way. I usually felt uncomfortable around strangers, but I leaned against this woman's warmth as if she were my salvation.

"We don't want it to swell dear..." She said softly looking at Charles. "So this is the little angel you drew..." She said and I looked at him finally. He blushed and Raoul smiled at him. Suddenly Raoul stood and said,  
"Come Therese, let's let them talk..." She nodded and patted my other cheek before leaving the room with the Vicomte.  
"I'm going to kill him you know..." Charles said, looking down at his hands.  
"I'm sorry..." I said, cursing myself, "I'm sorry for the way I treated you and for not trusting you." He looked up at me and held his hand up, silencing me.  
"Don't," he said, "I had no right...I am your friend, not your keeper...and I am sorry for trying to tell you how to live your life." My eyes began to burn again, and I could feel my chin quiver as I let my head drop to my arms on the table.

He moved to sit next to me and rubbed my back soothingly.  
"I'm sorry I came here, but I had to apologize. Oh God, I don't want to face him again..." I said, dreading returning to the opera. He grabbed my hand.  
"Stay..." He said and I looked at him in disbelief.  
"Stay _here?_" I asked him and he nodded.  
"Through Christmas. It's only a week..." He said, and I shook my head.  
"I couldn't..." I said. The last thing I wanted was to impose on someone's family during the holiday.  
"Please...do you honestly want to go back to the opera in the state you're in?" He had a point. Oliver would still be there. He'd probably told everyone some warped version of what had happened already. Maybe the managers would even fire me.  
"Well...no." I admitted and he put his arm around me.

"Come on..." He said, getting up and extending his hand to me.  
"What?" I asked, and he took my hand, pulling me up.  
"You're going to bed..." He said, more like an order than anything and I stopped.  
"But I don't have any clothes..." I protested and he laughed.  
"Forget that...you won't lack for anything here...you are welcome to anything in your closet." I sighed, knowing he'd won this argument and began walking again. Suddenly, I felt a bit dizzy and stumbled, but Charles was quick as a cat and soon I was laying in his arms with my head against his bare chest. He must have changed me into a nightgown and laid me in the bed, but I had fallen asleep before we even reached the room.

The next morning when I woke up, I was in clean nightclothes snugly tucked into the bed. In the crook of my arm was Charles's cat, Aida. For the first time in my life, I was so comfortable, I just couldn't will myself to get up. On the chair was the pink dress I had picked for the masquerade, with a small sealed note on it. I found the strength to get out of bed to pick it up. I went back to the bed and allowed myself to flop back down into the soft bedding, closing my eyes as I did. I didn't see Aida, and nearly fell on her, causing her to stare me down as she began to lick her paws.  
"Well I'm sorry your Highness..." I said with a laugh, scratching behind her ears as she came closer to rub her cheek over mine as I opened the note.

_I picked this up for you today... Told Aunt Meg where you were so you wouldn't worry. She said she'll see us tonight. Also, Dorgan is through at the Opera. Madame Giry overheard him telling someone his version of the story and an hour later his bags were packed and he was sent away for good. Before he left I gave him a little parting gift though. I broke his nose. _

Stay comfortable and don't worry. I'll see you later.  
Your friend,  
C


	16. Chapter 16

1CHARLES

"Do you think you could find a suitable new chain for this?" I asked the jeweler, holding up the locket I had taken from Maddie's dormitory room. The man took a look at the old locket and winced.  
"This thing looks like it's been to Hell and back." He exclaimed. I nodded, and he took it gently from me.  
"I think we can find something. If you'd like, I think I have something that will shine this right up." He said, gesturing to the tiny charm.  
"That would be great, just let me take the picture…" I said and removed the small photo from inside the locket. "When can I pick it up?" I asked him and he still examined it.  
"I can have it ready by…Christmas Eve…I'll look for a similar chain. Also, I think I may touch up the engraving…it's a bit old." He gave me a price and I nodded, telling him I would return on Christmas Eve.

I was going to present it to Maddie for Christmas along with a drawing of her mother based on the small portrait from inside the necklace.   
"Charles!" Someone called as I walked out of the store. I turned to find Daniel and Camille walking toward me, their arms full of things they had bought.  
"What are you doing?" I asked them and Camille held the items in one arm up.  
"Christmas shopping…getting away from precious little Genevieve…" She said, with a mocking tone and Daniel nudged her and laughed.  
"Oh come on Millie, she's not _that_ bad, she's just spoiled." I laughed. Genevieve was indeed a bit spoiled when it came to Uncle Garrett and Millie often felt as if her efforts to excel were a waste of time since Genevieve often overshadowed her.

"That's not the point. If I play a piece on the piano perfectly and she plays it with mistakes, _she_ gets the praise. If I draw a picture of a flower and she scribbles on a Goddamn piece of paper, _she's_ wonderful. I know Mama and Daddy love me, but it'd be nice to hear it sometimes, you know?" I nodded, although I had no siblings. Millie was the middle daughter, so Rosaline of course was the first girl and was adored, then Millie came and three years later, little Genevieve who was the baby through and through. Sometimes Millie just seemed to be forgotten in the midst of everything.

I put my arm around her.  
"I think you're great Millie, and so do your parents. I promise…your mother does nothing but praise you." I said. It was true. Aunt Laney continuously talked about how proud she was of Millie in her musical talents and other talents. Rosie never showed any interest in the arts and Genevieve seemed to think you could get far in life without working at anything. Daniel was destined to be a businessman, he was studying to become a lawyer, but he could play piano quite well too. That's why he and Millie got along so well, their determination and their love of music bonded them as siblings.

"So…how is the new house?" I asked them and Millie shrugged.  
"I like it…Paris is so much more…I don't know…" "Home?" Daniel finished for her and she nodded.  
"Home." She repeated and turned to Daniel. "Well, we should be getting home shan't we Danny?" She asked him and he nodded.  
"We'll see you in a few days for Christmas Eve dinner…" He said and I replied,  
"I may be a little late that night, but I will see you there." Dan's eyebrow raised and I quickly replied.  
"I just have to run to the jewelers and pick something up…" Millie giggled.  
"Aw…Charles is in love…" She teased and I glared at her, trying not to smile, but not denying it.  
"I am just doing a good deed for a good friend." I said and she laughed.  
"A good friend named…Madeleine?" Dan was laughing a bit too.

"As a matter of fact Nosy Millie, yes, it's Maddie. I am having the jeweler fix up her mother's locket." The teasing look in Millie's eyes was replaced with affection.   
"Charles…that's so sweet." Dan pulled gently on Camille's arm.  
"Come on Millie, we've got to go…" He said, and grinned at me, "I've got to meet Deirdre in an hour." I must have looked surprised because he laughed.  
"You're courting Didi?" I asked and he nodded.  
"We've been trying to keep it a secret since your birthday…" He said and we waved our goodbyes as they turned to go home. I took the picture of Chloe Denton from my pocket. She was a tragically beautiful woman, with fair hair and skin, but her facial features were rather similar to that of Madeleine's. In fact, the woman looked oddly familiar…but I knew I'd never met her, I would have only been thirteen at the time she died.

When I arrived back at the house, Maddie was searching through the guest room a bit frantically. She looked up to see me, a bit flushed and frazzled.  
"Oh Charles…did you happen to see my locket when you picked up the dress?" She asked and feeling a bit guilty and satisfied all at once I said,  
"No I'm sorry I didn't. Can I help you look?" She stomped her foot, pulling her stray curls from her face.  
"God damn it! I'll bet that scum Oliver Dorgan took it…bloody bastard." She cursed and I grinned. 

"Well, he was definitely bloody the last time I saw him…" I said, remembering his nose. He'd started cursing Madeleine when they told him to get out, calling her a tramp and a no good tart. I'd lost all control and spun him around as he was walking out the door and punched him straight in the nose, breaking it. Instantly, he'd begun to cry like a little girl and Deirdre began laughing at him, the other ballerinas following suit. He'd run from the opera, holding his nose, as if his life depended on it. After that I'd gone to Maddie's room and picked up her gown, since Deirdre had told me the ballerinas liked to steal each others' things if they were jealous, and I knew damn well that half of them despised Madeleine because of her natural talent and beauty. I also didn't plan on her returning to live in the dormitories before New Years Eve.

"You are the devil…" Maddie said, laughing at me and throwing at pillow at me. I threw it back and lunged at her playfully as we collided and fell onto the floor on the far side of the bed. Somehow I ended up on top of her and stopped, staring into those sparkling hazel eyes. "Charles…you can get off of me now…I think we're done acting like children." I smiled at her, touching her cheek.  
"You're right…we're done acting like children," I said and began to lower my head, unthinking, praying she wouldn't push me away. I'd waited so long to kiss her, to feel those silken full lips against mine. She looked a bit surprised but tilted her head up anyway, closing her eyes and bringing her hand up to my neck. Instantly, that part of me came to life that I had always been able to ignore before. I was so close…so close to her lips…

"Charles? Are you in here?" Therese's voice came from the doorway and my head snapped up as Maddie's eyes opened.  
"Get off!" She whispered at me and pushed me to the side as I heard Therese come into the room and come around the bed. _Think fast Charles…_I spun onto my knees and picked up a pen which had fallen to the floor.  
"Found it!" I cried, jumping to my feet, Madeleine was blushing horribly.  
"Oh good…" she muttered and Therese stood with her arms crossed, looking at me suspiciously.  
"Maddie dropped a pen and I was helping her find it…" I said, maybe a bit too quickly and she raised an eyebrow at me.  
"Yes…the pen." She said dryly with a sly smile. Maddie buried her face in her hands and sat on the bed.

Therese winked at Madeleine and turned back to me.  
"I made lunch for anyone who cares…" She said and pointed to her cheek, indicating that I give her a kiss on the cheek, which I did.  
"Good boy…I still forget you're twenty-five sometimes Charles…your Mother would have been so proud of the man you've become. You're the light of your father's life you know…" I nodded, and smiled over at Maddie.  
"Dad is great. He's so lonely though…" I said, thinking of the wistful way he looked at Mother's portrait every time he passed it. Sometimes, I could hear him talking to her before he went to sleep at night.  
"He's a good man, and he loved your mother so much, it was almost as if he were afraid of losing her at the drop of a hat."

Maddie looked over at her and then to me again and I shrugged.  
"But, she loved Dad…she would never have left him…" I said. I'd always thought I had been lucky to have parents who were so much in love.  
"Oh there was no doubt she loved Raoul, anyone could see that, but sometimes there was such sadness in her eyes, my heart broke for her. There are secrets in everyone's pasts that it's better not to pry. Your parents were lucky to have each other, and they knew it." Therese sighed and started toward the door. "Food downstairs…" She reminded us and I nodded at her, sitting next to Madeleine on the bed.  
"Hungry?" I asked, feeling a bit uncomfortable as I could tell she did too. She nodded and I took her hand and led her downstairs.


	17. Chapter 17

MADDIE

_What do you buy the man who has it all?_ I asked myself as I peered through the windows of the small shops that lined the streets of Paris with Deirdre. I didn't even know if he would buy me anything, not that I cared because I hadn't really been given things since my mother was alive other than Madame Giry supplying me with a new pair of pointe shoes every year for my birthday. It was more than I could have hoped for and I'd already bought her gift. A small music box with a tiny ballerina in it that spun around to a beautiful melancholy tune.

"Granny will love it Maddie." Deirdre said with a smile and took my hand. "Can you keep a secret?" She asked excitedly and I nodded, almost laughing at her. I wasn't one for gossip, but Deirdre was my dearest friend and I could only tolerate it from her.

"I'm being courted Maddie, can you imagine?" She cried and my mouth dropped open. When had she had time to court? And why hadn't she told me?

"By who?" I asked, surprised and she grinned.

"Daniel Reynolds...he's so...lovely." She sighed and I giggled.

"Lovely? Isn't that a strange word to describe a man?" I asked and she shook her head, dancing along the street with me.

"We've kept it a secret since Charles's birthday in November, but I can't anymore, I just can't!" I smiled at her happiness, her energy giving me inspiration.

"I'm happy for you Didi..." I said, and I meant it, but something inside me felt a bit empty. It seemed people were always finding that special person and I was doomed to walk the earth alone.

Every time I thought of falling in love, I felt as if I were falling of a cliff with nothing to grab onto, nothing to stop me from spiraling down into the dark depths. The thought of giving myself to someone body and soul scared me to no end. The lusty evil in Louis Dupont's eyes seared through my mind and the memory of being crushed onto the kitchen floor in that café woke me up at night in a cold sweat almost every night. Not to dream was a blessing for me. I had the recurring dream of being on that kitchen floor, with Dupont whispering his nonsense and when he finally left me alone to cry and I looked at him, he transformed into Mama, her body pale and lips gone blue, her eyes looking through me instead of at me. No, I couldn't fall in love. To lose myself would be to lose everything, for I was all I had left.

"Maddie, you look so sad..." Didi said and I looked at her, swallowing the lump that came in my throat whenever I thought of Mama. I remembered the locket, the only piece I had left of her. _Dorgan._

"Oh dear Maddie, please don't cry or I will too..." Deirdre said and I shrugged, smiling unhappily through my tears. "You're thinking of your Mother again aren't you?" She asked and I nodded.

"My locket, _her _locket. It's...gone." I said, and she embraced me as I leaned down and rested my head on her shoulder.

"Oh what I wretched selfish girl I am..." Deirdre said, holding me, "Here I am talking about how great my life is, and you're suffering." She took out her handkerchief and dabbed my eyes with it.

"Come on, let's get you back to the Chagny's." She said, and I shook my head.

"I have to buy something for Charles. Raoul too. It's the least I can do for all they've done for me."

Deirdre eyed me, but didn't press further as we walked into a small music store. It was there I found what I had been looking for. A beautiful black leather bound book, filled with blank music. Big enough to write an opera in. It was a bit expensive but I didn't care. This was the gift. Onto the leather I could use gold thread and sew his name onto it.

"Maddie, that is beautiful..." Deirdre breathed and I nodded, almost afraid to touch it. I lifted it with trembling fingers and held it securely to my body as I walked to the counter and paid the owner before we left. I didn't really know Raoul very well so I was a bit perplexed as to what he would like, but I remembered his office and how lovely it had been, so I settled on buying him a set of pens with the letter "C" on them for Chagny. It wasn't much, but I was satisfied with it.

As we passed a jewelry store, I saw a small shining heart shaped locket hanging in the window and my eyes began to burn as I thought of my lost old fashioned oval shaped one. _Mama...why did you have to go? I miss you..._She had been so lovely with the lightest brown, almost a dusty blonde color hair and my hazel eyes. We had the same mouth and nose, but we never knew where I'd gotten my hair color from. She told me my father had been a light brown also. Whenever I asked about him, she had simply shaken her head and dropped the subject. Poor Mama, she must have loved him for it wasn't hate I saw in her eyes but deep longing. If someone as beautiful as she had been couldn't find love, then how could someone like me find it?

It was true she had been a prostitute, but she would have done anything to make sure I was healthy and safe. She'd only become a prostitute after I was born. My father was a married man, and my grandfather, Alfred Denton, was horrid. Lowly rotten scum. He was a thief and a liar. It was his fault Mama had been thrown into prostitution. My mother's father had made some unseemly financial decisions and had gotten caught, so he'd forced Mama to sleep with men he chose for her for a price to pay off his debts. He'd owned a tavern and forced Mama to work there, I remembered him telling her she owed him for taking in her bastard child. He'd died about a year before Mama did and she took what little money she could find and we'd made a life for ourselves. Six months after his death, she grew ill and saw a doctor who informed her that she had syphilis. Slowly, she had deteriorated from that. I'd never forget her last words to me,

"You're strong my Madeleine. So strong...stay strong..." Then she'd died and I ran.

I walked back into the Chagny's home with Deirdre tired from walking and from all of the memories. Everyone at the opera was on a break until after the New Year, so we didn't have to be at rehearsal this evening. The house was filled with voices that I recognized as Charles's aunt, uncle and cousins. Silently I ran the gifts up to the room I had inhabited and Deirdre and I made our way into the sitting room. She blushed deeply when she saw Daniel and he looked away shyly. I smirked as did Charles whose eyes had lit up when we walked in. I flushed, remembering the scene in my room the day before. So close I had been to jumping off the edge and so relieved had I been when Therese had interrupted. I didn't dare think of what could have happened between us. Not when those light green eyes were so enchanting...

Everyone had turned to look at me and Deirdre, following Charles and Daniel's eyes. Raoul stood coming to give me a quick kiss on the cheek in his sweet, fatherly way.

"Take care of everything?" He asked me and I nodded as he gestured for me to sit next to Charles on the small love seat. Deirdre sat in the chair near where Daniel was sitting on the floor. I smiled at his sister, Camille, who returned the gesture before turning back to her mother.

"Maman, just because all of the silly society fluff is going to this masquerade ball doesn't mean I want to go..." She stated, playing with the sleeve of her dress.

"But Millie, darling, Gabriel is a nice young man and you two used to get along so well..." Charles's aunt replied, patting her daughter's arm.

"That was before he...he became everyone's favorite bachelor. He's a playboy Maman, and I certainly don't have time for womanizers." Daniel laughed at her.

"Oh come off it Millie, the man's finally come out of his shell...just because he isn't terribly shy anymore, doesn't mean he isn't the same person."

"Whose side are you on anyway?" Camille asked her brother, glaring at him. Her father touched her cheek.

"Millie...you're sixteen. No one expects you to be an adult already. Go out and have some fun...you deserve it." He urged and she threw her hands up in the air.

"Fine! I'll go...but that doesn't mean I'll enjoy myself." She sulked and strode out of the room quickly. Charles started to get up, but I stopped him.

"I'll go...maybe if she talked to someone near her own age..." I said and Camille's mother nodded. I found her in the library, trailing her finger along the mantle of the large fireplace.

"Someone sure did a number on you, didn't they?" I said from the doorway and she spun around.

"Oh! You scared me!" She said, surprised and I joined her near the fireplace.

"Do you want to talk about it Camille?" I asked, offering her friendship and she seemed to think a moment before shaking her head.

"No...you wouldn't understand..." She muttered and I sat down in an overstuffed armchair.

"You think so? How about I start...my mother died when I was six and I ran away so they wouldn't take me to an orphanage." She turned to stare at me in disbelief.

"I'm sorry...I couldn't imagine losing a parent. What of your father?" She said and I shook my head.

"I don't know who he is..." I replied as she sat in the other armchair. "Nor do I care for that matter..." I added and she nodded, sighing.

"I was very close with a teacher at my school...we would talk about music and art, anything really but the relationship was strictly teacher student. He was a younger man, maybe in his early thirties. He was engaged to a beautiful girl and was looking forward to starting a family with her. One day during class, the headmaster of the school asked to talk to him. Class was dismissed, but I stayed. He was crying...I asked what was wrong he told me Rachele had been murdered. I wasn't thinking...he was my friend and I wanted to help him, so I hugged him. One of the girls in my class had forgotten something in class and came back into the classroom to find me holding him. She walked back out without a word, but the next day, my teacher was gone and people were whispering about us...Gabriel was the only one I could talk to ever since I was young, but all of a sudden, the next time I saw him he had a different girl on his arm each night. It bothered me. Like he didn't have time for me anymore...I was alone."

"Camille I..." I started but she held up her hand.

"Don't pity me...please. I've gotten over it...It's funny, you know? You try to do something nice for someone, show a little compassion, and it blows up in your face...now, because I treated someone like a human being, that man will probably never teach again. He lost his love, his job, his whole life because of me." She looked miserable, and terribly afraid, so I did what anyone would do and I hugged her. I knew how that felt, to be alone...an outcast. It made me feel more normal to know that even the wealthy had their problems.

"Camille...listen to me...give Gabriel a second chance as your friend...good friends are hard to come by...trust me I should know. And maybe I'm not in the same class as you, but I want you to know if you ever want to talk, I'm here for you. I know what it's like to be alone." She nodded her thanks and hugged me back, feeling like a little girl as I held her. "Does your mother know?" I asked her, and she shook her head.

"She's heard the stories, but has never pried about it." I sighed.

"I think you should talk to her...it will help. I wish I had a mother to talk to."

Camille stood and smiled at me.

"Thanks you know...for everything. Rosie doesn't have time for me anymore and Genevieve, well...she's too young. She hates me anyway." I smiled.

"No she doesn't. She tries to emulate your every move..." I said, thinking of the little girl in the other room with her straight brown hair and bright blue eyes.

"You think?" Camille said, with a small twinkle in her blue-green eyes and I nodded.

"She adores you Camille, it's so obvious. Maybe it's because I don't have any real family, but I definitely can see it." The shorter girl hugged me again tightly.

"Thank you Madeleine." She said and I laughed.

"You can call me Maddie." She smiled, making me envious of her beauty which was so angelic in a pure, heavenly way with her long golden hair and luminescent eyes and just a touch of a peach glow to her cheeks.

"Call me Millie..." She said and I couldn't suppress a giggle.

"Maddie and Millie...an interesting team."


	18. Chapter 18

CHARLES

"Why won't she talk to me? She acts as if I am the most repulsive person she's ever met..." Gabe lamented about Millie four days before Christmas, as I tried to finish some designs.  
"Well you are pretty repulsive..." I laughed, measuring the width of an arch. He threw a pillow at me.  
"Thanks..." He retorted and I shrugged, looking at him. I pushed my work away and stood.  
"Well, well, well...somebody has their knickers in a twist." I teased him, punching him in the arm. "She thinks you're a womanizer..." I said and his mouth dropped.  
"She said that?" He asked and I nodded.  
"That's what Maddie told me." He ran a hand through his light blonde hair.  
"Funny..." He muttered, sitting in one of my chairs. "I always thought if she could see I was confident she would like...nevermind." He said.

"She agreed to go Gabe, isn't that enough?" I asked him, looking toward the door when I heard Maddie's voice down the hall.  
"Yes...I suppose that's all I'll ever get from her." He sighed, and I had to chuckle. I'd never seen him torn up over a woman, especially Millie. They had been best friends two years ago and now it seemed as if she couldn't stand the sight of him. I'd heard people whispering about her now and then, but they always stopped when they noticed him. Some said she had fallen in love with her teacher, some said they had simply slept together, but I didn't believe it for a moment. I knew Camille too well.  
"What do you want from her, Gabe? Do you have feelings for her?" I asked him, serious now. He shrugged.

"I don't know Charles...she was always just this kid hanging around. Kind of a pest, but now...she's a woman and...well, have you seen her?" I half smiled, but jokingly cringed.  
"Yes I've seen her and normally, I don't find women I am related to attractive..." I said and he looked at me exasperated.  
"You know what I meant. She's grown up...she's...lovely." He said and I had to admit, I'd never seen Gabe like this over a woman...I knew he was no stranger to women, but he'd never become attached to any of them. A year back, when she had taken some time off of school, she'd come to Paris for a bit, but Gabe had hardly noticed in his efforts to court every available woman in Paris. When they had both been at my birthday, I could see the admiration in his eyes.

"Just be yourself Gabe...I mean, don't pull a comedy routine because it doesn't work with Millie. Be the man she used to be able to confide in. I didn't know you had...feelings for her." I said, feeling a bit of regret for neglecting my friend lately. He smiled.  
"Well, you've been a bit busy with your own feelings lately, Charles." He laughed at me as my head snapped up when I heard Maddie laughing, but he turned serious when he caught his reflection in the mirror.  
"Do you think my face has something to do with it?" He asked, touching the scars on his cheek. I looked at him in disbelief.  
"Gabe...since when has Millie been shallow? It's not even half bad..." I told him. It wasn't. It simply looked like a small fraction of his cheek under his eye had been burned a bit severely. His eye wasn't affected by it, nor was the rest of his face. "There are people far more disfigured than you..."

Gabe sighed.  
"I know...sometimes it just bothers me, you know? It doesn't hurt, I don't _feel_ any different than anyone else, but I know they look. Some people even avoid me like a pestilence, they pull their children closer as I walk by. Maybe I should go back to wearing the stupid mask." I winced thinking of that horrid thing. It covered almost half of his face, making it hard for him to eat, blink and even smile.  
"God no...that thing is awful...trust me...it's not even that bad. Something happened to Millie Gabe...I think that's what has been troubling her." He nodded.  
"I've heard the stories...disgusting, and I don't believe a word of it. Camille wouldn't seduce an engaged man..." He stood from where he was sitting, "She deserves so much more...maybe I am a bit old for her?" He said and I chuckled.

"It's twelve years Gabe, not thirty. Age shouldn't matter...my father was five years older than Mother." He sighed again, and I went back to my desk to finish the lining of the arch I had been working on.  
"I'd like to know exactly what happened with that teacher..." Was his response and he was answered by a lovely calm voice at the door.  
"Maybe you should ask her yourself..." I turned to see Madeleine standing there, every inch the angel in a beige dress, her hair pulled softly back in a way my mother often wore her hair. I must have been standing there with my mouth hanging open because Gabe and Maddie were both looking at me as if I were sick.  
"Y-you look...you look..." I stuttered and she rolled her eyes waving me off with a nervous laugh.  
"Thanks...Therese got a hold of me." She said dryly, leaning against the door frame. Even Gabe was smiling as he looked at her. She turned back to Gabe.

"Do you know what happened to her?" He asked, Maddie and she nodded.  
"She told me yesterday...but I don't think it's my story to tell..." She added and his face fell. "I can tell you it was a big misunderstanding." He sighed at her words.  
"Thank you..." He said, touching Maddie's shoulder.  
"It's nothing...you really do care for her..." She said, as if the concept of romance were foreign to her.  
"I do...but she doesn't feel the same..." He said, and she turned his face to look at her, as maybe a mother would do for her hurting child.  
"Have you asked her? Have you even discussed it?" She asked and he shook his head.  
"I'm scared...I don't know how." He admitted and I ran a hand through my hair.

"Just speak from your heart Gabriel...my mother used to say that..." She said, touching her neck as if to feel her locket sadly. He grinned.  
"My mother says that too." He hugged Maddie quickly before coming to me to give me a quick pat on the back.  
"Thanks you two..." He said and grinned mischievously, "You two make quite the pair..." He said, laughing and left the room. Maddie's face had gone red as she stuttered,  
"I-I...I have to...I'm just..."  
"Hungry?" I finished for her and she nodded, touching her pink cheek embarrassed.

After we'd eaten, I had to head over to Granny Giry's flat to help her clean out some old clothes before Christmas. Some were Mother and Aunt Meg's old clothes, some were male clothes, presumably her late husband's. I never pried, it wasn't my place.  
"Would you like to come?" I asked Madeleine who smiled.  
"Actually I would, I miss Madame Giry, she hasn't been around the opera lately." I gave her a light blue winter cloak with a hood that my mother had only worn once or twice and a pair of her gloves.  
"You don't need to become ill..." I explained, "I thought it might be nice to take the open carriage in the snow and all that." Her face lit up as I led her out and helped her into the ready carriage, pulling a fur blanket over our laps.

I told our driver, Martin, where we were headed and he gave me a nod and Maddie a small smile. He was Therese's husband, and a good man at that. They had two grown children who lived outside of Paris...a lovely warm family. I dared to put my arm around Maddie, to provide extra warmth for her in the snow, and to my surprise, she didn't pull away. I think it surprised her too, because she looked up at me with a bit of fear in her eyes, but I smiled at her.  
"Relax...it's cold." I said and she seemed to sigh in relief. We sat the rest of the ride in silence, but at one point, she seemed to lay her head on my shoulder and I took in the scent of her hair which smelled sort of like apples. When we arrived at the small flat, I got out first and helped her down, lifting her by her waist.  
"Thank you..." She said and I told Martin we should be ready in about three hours. He smiled at me and nodded at Maddie before leaving.

"Charles! _Madeleine?_" Granny Giry said, surprised to see us and pulling us out of the snow. "You're here together?" She asked, hiding a smirk and I nodded. She led us up into an old bedroom and gestured toward the piles of clothes that were everywhere.  
"Raising two girls, and having a husband leaves you with this..." She laughed, covering her mouth as she coughed a bit. I frowned at the sound of her cough, but let it go as she said,  
"Throw away the clothes that are past repair...but keep some...I want to donate them." She left us then as we began to rifle through the clothes. Most of them were much past their peak, but some were still wearable. I came across a ballet costume that closely resembled those that the ballerinas had worn during _Hannibal._ Dust flew as we picked up the old clothes, making us sneeze every so often. A few clothes were so old fashioned, we had to laugh.

Finally, we had the clothes around the room situated into separated piles, one to throw away and one for donating. All that was left was the tiny closet. I pulled the old doors open, revealing many fine tailored suits.  
"Oh my..." Maddie said, admiring the fabric. "These must have cost a fortune..." She said, and I nodded, confused.  
"With the salary of ballet dancers...especially when Granny Giry was the prima ballerina, there's no way that she and Philippe could have afforded these..." I said, picking up the sleeve of one.  
"They're lovely though, it would be a shame to see them thrown away and in such good condition." She sighed and I nodded. They were impressive. Some were fine velvet, with gold threading...some were silk. I filed through them until I saw something piled on the floor.  
"What is that?" I said, pointing to it and Maddie shrugged.  
"It must have fallen off of the hanger." It was hard to see what color it was, purple maybe, in the dark room. I crouched to pick it up and gasped at what fell out into my lap. A mask. Obviously modeled after a skull...


	19. Chapter 19

MADDIE

"Oh my God…" I heard myself whisper as Charles held the skull like mask to his face. It covered the top half of his face, leaving only his chin and mouth revealed.  
"How does it look?" He asked, standing and I could only stare at him. He laughed. "So it has an affect…" I must have looked like some gaping idiot, and I realized it, so I shook it off and shrugged.  
"It's…interesting." I said, trying to hide the evidence of the tremor that had gone through my body at the sight of him wearing that mask. He grinned, taking it off to admire it.  
"It certainly is," He agreed with me and crouched to pick up the material it had been wrapped in. He handed me the mask, which for some reason frightened the living hell right out of me, and admired the outfit, which was a costume of some sort.  
"It's perfect!" He exclaimed and I only looked at him, my eyebrows furrowed.

"Perfect, for what?" I blankly asked and he rushed over to me.  
"For the ball!" He said, and when I still stared at him he laughed, "The masquerade ball?" Oh yes, now I remembered. I nodded, feeling the material. It was stunning and must have cost a fortune, just as every suit in this closet must have. The bedroom door opened and Madame Giry was standing there in the doorway, gaping at Charles. Her eyes widened when she saw me holding the mask.  
"The closet…" She said as if scolding herself, holding a hand to her cheek.  
"Granny, these suits are divine…are you sure you want to give them away?" She coughed.  
"No…um…actually I had completely forgotten about those. I cannot part with them." She said, her eyes wide like a child who has just been caught doing something wrong.

"Were they Philippe's?" Charles asked her, and she became even more flustered.  
"Er…Philippe…yes! Yes!" She said as if she had found the answer she'd been searching for, but there was still something I didn't understand.  
"Madame Giry, if these were your husband's suits, why are they a completely different shape and size than the suits that weren't in the closet?" The fine suits were much longer and seemed to have been tailored perfectly to someone's size. Charles looked at her expectantly and she said,  
"Well, people change darling…now come along you two…it's getting dark!" With that she flew from the room leaving us to gape after her.  
"She just lied right to our faces you know…" He said softly, but with a smirk and I nodded.  
"I know. She doesn't lie, Charles, but she did just now."

We said our goodbyes to her and left. Charles pulled out the costume from the small bag we had taken. In the dimming light, it was a brilliant red, like nothing I'd ever seen.  
"It's beautiful…" I whispered and he nodded.  
"It really is. Whoever made this is a genius..." He turned to me then, "Maddie, don't tell anyone…I want it to be a surprise." I nodded, knowing full well I wasn't one to gossip. Snow was still lightly falling, but the clouds had broken and you could see the pink of the setting sun stretching across the horizon.  
"Are you cold?" He asked me, and I shook my head.  
"Actually I am quite comfortable…I can't believe Christmas is only four days away." I said and he nodded, a smile playing on his lips.

"What?" I asked him, and he broke, grinning.  
"Nothing…I just can't wait." He said suspiciously and I eyed him.  
"Why is that?" I asked, knowing damn well he was up to something. Hell, he always was.  
"I just love Christmas…" He said with a chuckle and I raised an eyebrow.  
"Yes…and you're not insane…" I said sarcastically, but couldn't hold back a smirk.  
"Insanity is a feature I pride myself on…" He said proudly and sat back to admire the red material once more.  
"Chagny, I've got my eye on you." I said, and he smiled, whispering what sounded like,  
"And I never want to take mine off you…" I looked at him, but he was so calm, I decided I must have imagined it.

"Did you two have fun today?" Raoul asked, coming out of his study after we'd settled back in.  
"It was lovely…" I said, remembering the carriage ride. Charles nodded, winking at me. Raoul looked at him.  
"Is there something going on here that you two aren't telling me?" He laughed and it came. The blushing.  
"No." I said, maybe a bit too quickly, but he laughed at me. "I'm um…going to go lie down." I said, touching Charles's arm before leaving the room and running up to the room I was now living in. I buried my head in my pillow and cried, really not knowing why. _Why can't I love anyone?_ Would I ever be able to love? And one final question: If I couldn't, could I honestly commit to a lifetime of solitude?

"Mama…" I whispered and fell into troubled sleep. We were back at the tavern. I was six again, and I'd just woken from a horrible nightmare. I had to go find Mama, she always comforted me when I had bad dreams. I walked down the hall to her room and heard her voice from inside.  
"Please…that hurts…anything else but not that."  
"Woman I am paying for this, so I will take what I damn well want!" A gruff voice came, and I began to cry as her screams of horror grew louder. Unable to take it anymore, I pushed the door open and stared in horror at the sight before me. A large drunken man had my mother bent over her headboard as she sobbed. I didn't know what to do. I scream. Mama's head snapped up to see me standing in the doorway.  
"Maddie!"

"Maddie…" A gentle voice said, "Maddie wake up please…" I fought against the hands that were gently holding me.  
"Get off of her, get off! Mama!"  
"Maddie no…wake up…it's me…open your eyes sweetheart." I jolted awake at this command, sweat beading my forehead, my curls stuck to my face. I was shaking, I knew I was, because he was holding me tightly.  
"Charles?" I asked, hoping I wasn't imagining him.  
"You were screaming, Maddie." He replied simply.  
"I'm so tired…" I whispered, laying against his chest as he rested his chin on my head.  
"I know…" He said and laid me back down, before crawling onto the bed beside me and wrapping his arms back around me. It was unbelievably comfortable, but I was confused.  
"Charles?" I asked him, as to why he was lying in my bed beside me, but he put a finger to my lips.  
"Shh…just sleep." As if by command, my eyes closed and I slept.

I dreamt of Mama again, but this time it wasn't a memory and I wasn't six. It was warm, and I was walking through a field. I had no idea where I was, but I didn't feel lost, and then I saw her light hair blowing in the soft breeze. She seemed to be glowing.  
"Madeleine…my baby." She said, holding her arms out for me. I gladly ran into them.  
"Mama…" I murmured, laying my head on her shoulder.  
"My poor Madeleine…why are you so afraid?" She asked, her voice just as lovely as I remembered.

"Afraid?" I asked, looking at her, now eye to eye with her. She nodded and touched my cheek.  
"You are afraid to let yourself love my darling…" I began to cry.  
"Mama…it's just so hard. All men are the same…they love you and leave you…use you and hurt you." She shook her head sadly.  
"No Maddie, not all men are…he's not." She said, pointed behind me and I turned to see Charles standing there, smiling at me, his light green eyes glowing. He wore a beautiful tuxedo with tails and a black cloak which was also blowing in the wind. I looked back at Mama who was smiling.

"You have to let it go, Madeleine. Let yourself be happy. Love him." She said and I clung to her.  
"I can't Mama…" I sobbed, "What if he leaves me like my father left you?" I asked her desperately, and she kissed my forehead.  
"My sweet Maddie…I loved your father…_I_ ran…" She said, her eyes full with love and loss. Once again she pointed to Charles, who had his arm outstretched to mine.  
"Go to him…" She whispered and suddenly disappeared, leaving me to look after her, but surprisingly contentedly, look back at Charles and all his beauty.

I looked down at myself and noticed I was wearing a white gown, not a wedding gown, but a fabulous gown. Instantly, I recognized it. The original costume for Elissa in Act three of _Hannibal._ I realized now, what Mama had meant. It was time for me to live my life and stop existing and clinging to my shell of a past. I must build my own future, and even if Charles wasn't my future, he was in my present and while I didn't think I was ready for love, I knew I was ready to trust him. I took his hand, and I suddenly woke to a dark room, still lying next to him and listening to his steady breathing. I stared at him for a moment, and realized I had my arm draped across his middle, but I was too tired and too comfortable to care. Unthinking I kissed his warm cheek and fell back into a sound, dreamless sleep.


	20. Chapter 20

CHARLES

I woke up with a mouthful of Maddie's hair and her body half draped over me. I hadn't realized I'd slept there all night. I only meant to hold her until she settled and go to my own room. It was still quite early, since the sun had only just begun to rise. Maddie must have sensed I was awake because her eyes opened too and she looked up at me in confusion.  
"Charles…" She said, her voice thick with sleep, "You slept here all night?" I shrugged.  
"It would appear so…I'm sorry, I must have been more tired than I thought." I yawned and she smiled.  
"I guess so." She said and I realized she was still laying with her body half across me. This could be bad…for both of us, seeing as involuntarily another part of me awakened. I shot out of the bed.  
"I'd better get back to my room before Therese or Dad gets up!" I said quickly and ran from the room.

_Oh God!_ I thought as I shut my bedroom door behind me. I want nothing more than to be near her and when I am finally near her, I run. Idiot. What if she'd noticed? I looked around my room unsure of what to do. This really hadn't happened much before, but a cold shower sounded nice. I sat on my bed for five minutes just staring at the wall, and things slowly returned to normal. I breathed a sigh of relief and laid back in the bed, taking off my old clothes and sliding under the covers. It was still early, I would just sleep a while longer.  
"Charles?" I looked up to see Maddie in the doorway, her silhouette clearly visible in the pale early morning light. Not again…I pretended to be asleep, but she came in and nudged my shoulder. I looked at her tiredly.

"What is it Maddie?" I asked with a yawn and she sat on the bed. I pulled the covers tightly around myself.  
"Why did you just run? Did I do something to offend you?" She asked, for the first time showing genuine concern.  
"No no…I just um…something came up." I stuttered. It was the truth. Something had come up. _Oh God Maddie…don't come any closer._  
"I see…" She said, standing up. _Thank you Lord._ "Well, I am going back to bed. Thank you for caring enough to stay with me last night." I nodded at her.  
"Anytime…" I said and she left.

"Charles get up! Get up!" Therese was shaking me awake about three hours later. I looked up at her groggily.  
"What? What's going on?" I asked, wiping my eyes.  
"Your Aunt and Uncle are here and they brought the dog." She said smiling and left me to get dressed. I hurried and picked out a shirt and pants to wear and brushed through my hair before running downstairs. Millie was sitting on the floor near her parents' feet rubbing the dog's stomach. It was a mutt, obviously part terrier and I was the one who had given him to my Aunt and Uncle. A short time after Mother had died, after we had come back to France from England, we had been on our way to the opera to see Carmen. Our carriage had run over this poor little mutt, and, being sixteen and an animal lover, I rushed to find a veterinary surgeon, much to the protests of Dad, on a Friday night. Luckily I had found one and the little dog was perfectly fine. I ended up giving him to Millie for her eighth birthday since she had wished for a pet so badly, and she had named him Gus.

Gus, sensing I was in the room, hopped up and pounced over to me, trying to get to my face. I picked him up and he showered me with affection, still energetic for an old dog. He ran instantly back to Millie and I sat in the armchair, trying not to meet Maddie's eyes across from me.  
"So you went from uninspired architect to an opera star in a matter of a month." Aunt Laney laughed and I shrugged.  
"I wanted to explore my options." I said and she nodded.  
"Well, you did…what opera are you all doing next?" She asked and I looked to Maddie.  
"I believe they said _Il Muto._" She answered for me and Aunt Laney nodded.  
"I always loved _Il Muto,_ didn't you Garrett?" She asked my Uncle and he nodded.  
"One of the few that wasn't horribly drawn out!" He stated and she hit his arm.  
"Not everyone loves opera…" I defended him and he smiled.

"See? My nephew defends me!" He stuck his tongue out at her and for a moment, it seemed like they were two teenaged children again. Maddie giggled quietly as Millie rolled her eyes.  
"Started a party without me, did you?" Gabe's voice came from the door way and Millie instantly focused directly on the dog. I rose to shake his hand. He looked desperately at the beautiful girl on the floor who was patting her dog affectionately, almost fiercely.  
"Gabriel…good to see you." My Aunt said, coming to kiss his cheek. "How is your Mother?" She asked him and he nodded.  
"Well. As is Dad." He replied and moved to sit across from Camille on the floor.

"You can't ignore me forever Camille Reynolds…" He said lightly and she shot fire at him with her eyes. Her blue-green eyes that almost everyone in my family had. Except me. My parents had always told me I took after my grandfather, Gustave Daaé, but I didn't see the resemblance. I don't think they did either.  
"I have no desire to talk…" She muttered and looked at him intently. "You're wearing a mask." She said, it was a statement more than anything, but he nodded. "Why? You never cared before." She said and he looked a bit embarrassed.  
"I was shopping for Christmas today and I just…I didn't want people to…you know, stare." Camille shook her head.  
"That's your problem Gabriel. You let your fear of what everyone else thinks get the best of you." She said and snapped her fingers for Gus to follow her out of the room.

Gabe took the mask off and looked at it. Maddie joined him on the floor and put her arms around him in a supportive way.  
"She's right you know…" Maddie said gently, "You shouldn't be ashamed of who you are." He shrugged.  
"I don't try to be…but it's not easy for me. I mean, I know I am not horribly deformed like those you see in institutions and such, but people still stare and it hurts. I am twenty-eight years old, but when those people look at me I feel like a five year old again." I looked down at my hands, feeling uneasy for him. He was so right. I couldn't imagine being deformed, or disfigured. Not that I wouldn't take the burden from him in a heartbeat after all he'd done for me. People who were different didn't have a chance in this world. Children who were born with marred faces could be thrown into an asylum and beaten daily, simply because they weren't always easy to look at. It sickened me. A child who was abused and suffered brain trauma could be punished for the mistakes of their parents.

Aunt Laney had sat back down and looked at Gabe sympathetically.  
"She's angry because she cares, you know." She said quietly and Gabe nodded.  
"I need to go talk to her…" He said and left the room.  
"I think that would be a good idea." Aunt Laney said and he rose to leave. Maddie sat back in the chair, she had been sitting in.  
"Where is everyone?" I asked my Aunt, referring to Genevieve, Rosie and Dan. She laughed and rolled her eyes.  
"Rosie and her fiancé took Genevieve to buy a new dress for Christmas, and Daniel…well, actually I don't know where Daniel is. That boy has been very sneaky these past few weeks." She said and Uncle Garrett nodded.

"I think he's seeing someone." He said, and she looked at him in surprise.  
"Has he said anything?" She asked and he shook his head.  
"No, but he's always leaving with little trinkets, or flowers." He replied and she nodded. Maddie and I looked at each other, and she had a look of understanding in her eyes. She couldn't possibly know about Deirdre and Dan, unless…of course. Deirdre. The biggest gossip at the opera. She couldn't hold a secret in if her life depended on it. Dad always laughed that she was just like Aunt Meg used to be. Still, it must have been nice for Deirdre and Dan, to realize they had feelings for each other, but how hard to keep it a secret. If I loved someone, I would want to tell everyone. I sneaked another sidelong glance at Madeleine, who was talking to my Aunt about being in the ballet.

"I've been in the ballet for six years now and from the way it looks, I'll be there for six more or longer…" She said and I smirked to myself. _Not if I have anything to do with it, you will be leading soprano._ In fact, unbeknownst to Madeleine, I had sent a letter to the London opera, my family having been good friends with the managers there and gushed about Benedetta in the letter, saying she was a gem and a prize any opera would be proud to have. I also mentioned how much she was paid here and said she could be lured away for a bit more. I sighed, looking at her. Tomorrow was Christmas Eve. Tomorrow, I would pick up the locket from the jeweler. Tomorrow things could be different.

Okay this chapter is not good. I am sorry…I don't know why it didn't turn out right. Anyway…I will post the Maddie chapter soon to make up for it.


	21. Chapter 21

MADDIE

_Christmas Eve, 1906_

_Charles has been acting very strange this morning. He ran out the door just after breakfast without so much as a second word. He has been avoiding me since yesterday morning. I know he is, because when we were walking toward each other in the hall, he immediately disappeared into his room and shut the door. He left me a note this morning that said, "I have a surprise for you tonight." I think he's up to something. Then again, when isn't he up to something?_

Around mid-afternoon, he returned and before I could even say hello, he ran upstairs and slammed his bedroom door. Ten minutes later, he returned with a huge smile on his face, but I was a bit hurt by the way he had been acting so I pretended not to care.

"Happy Christmas Eve." He said, kissing my cheek breathlessly. I nodded at him, but didn't say it back. Hurt flashed in his light green eyes.

"Maddie, are you angry with me?" He asked, sitting next to me on the sofa. I shook my head.

"If you do not want to talk to me, I do not wish to speak with you…" I said, and picked up a book I had been reading.

"What?" He asked, and I looked up at him, irked.

"You have been avoiding me like the plague for going on two days now Charles. Why?" He sighed.

"I…haven't been avoiding you…" He said lamely and I stood.

"Look Charles, I don't know what I did to you but I am sorry!" I yelled and he stood, new fire suddenly in his eyes, darkening them.

"It's not what you did to me damn it! It's what you _do _to me! Look Madeleine…I'm not going to lie and say I am not attracted to you because guess what? I am! It kills me to be around you every day and know that you don't feel the same…" I stood in shock at his confession, but suddenly felt even more angry.

"You think you're the only one with problems? Do you want to know _why_? Do you even care to know?" I asked. If he was so intent on knowing, he would get every last dirty detail.

"Yes Madeleine! I want to know! Enlighten me please!"

"You asked for it." I muttered and sharply motioned for him to sit back down. "My mother was a prostitute. At least she became one after I was born. My grandfather forced her into it. We lived at his tavern, she and I. I saw things that I hope to God you never have to see. He was evil, and disgusting. I hated him, _hate _him and I hope he is burning in Hell. If he was still alive I would murder him in cold blood and laugh over his dead body." Charles's eyes widened but he nodded for me to continue.

"I don't have a father…well, I do, but I don't know who he is. All I remember her saying was he was a rich married man and wanted nothing to do with us. Fine. If he doesn't want me I don't want him. When I was six, my mother died of syphilis right in front of me. I knew they would throw me in an orphanage so I took her locket off of her and grabbed a few small things out of her drawer, and I ran.

For a year I lived on the streets, eating out of people's garbage, relying on pity. Every day I hoped to die. Finally when I was seven, I began to work in a little café in Paris for a bit of food and a place to sleep at night. That café was run by Louis Dupont. I worked there for five years and every night since I had come, he would force me to do what he wanted for him. I have done things married woman would faint just thinking about!" I knew I was crying now, but I didn't care, he had brought this on himself. His face was pale and his head in his hands, which made me angry again.

"That's right, Charles…now what do you think of me? Do you still think I deserve to be prima donna? Do you still think I am worthy of living under your roof? Oliver Dorgan wasn't an idiot you know. He saw his whore and he made sure to get her because that's all I am and all I will ever be!" I fell to my knees, dizzy with the pain I felt.

"Stop…" Charles murmured, standing. "How can you talk like that about yourself? You were a child Goddamn it! A little girl! Deirdre told me a little, but this…how? Why?" He had me by the shoulders now and was shaking me a bit violently. I felt like a child and he suddenly seemed the largest man in the world.

"You listen to me Madeleine Denton, and you listen well. You are no whore and you never were…I will not tolerate this self-degrading talk. Not in my house. Not _ever._ Do you understand? Do you!" He shook me again. I could only nod, numbly, as he softened, pulling me tightly to him before sitting me down.

"Good girl…" He said and moved to fetch me a glass of water and offered me his handkerchief. "Now, drink slowly and wipe your face. I'll be right back." I drank as he said to and laid my head against the back of the sofa.

He returned with a small wrapped box and a card, sitting next to me again. Smiling he said,

"I was going to give you this tonight when everyone is here, but I think now would be the best time." I looked up at him suspicious. It was a small box, obviously a jewelry box of some sort. Panic flew through my body. _Oh God, I'm just learning to trust you; please don't ask me to marry you!_ My mind screamed as I shakily took the small package and tenderly unwrapped it. It was a jewelry box. My heart froze, but Charles stopped me from opening it.

"Read the card first." He said firmly and I picked up the paper, relieved a bit to delay the inevitable.

_Madeleine, _

_Please don't kill me. I did this for you…_

_Charles_

I looked up at him suspiciously and took the small velvet box again. What had he done? He nodded for me to open it and with a trembling hand, I did. When I saw its contents I had to draw in a breath. It was my mother's locket. I looked up at him angrily for a second and he turned red, afraid. My anger, however, didn't seem important when I noticed the condition Mama's locket was in. There was a new chain, shiny and beautiful, the locket itself had been renewed and her name was easy to read again. I opened it to see Mama's beautiful face smiling at me. I looked back up at Charles, my face blotchy and my eyes burning with tears and I said,

"You took my locket." He nodded. "Why did you do this for me?" I asked him, sniffling.

"You deserved something nice for a change. Maddie, I see you all the time, thinking of everyone else…but who has ever done anything really thoughtful for you with the exception of Granny Giry and Aunt Meg?" No one.

"Why me?" I asked him, clutching the necklace to my heart and he shrugged.

"Look, all my life, girls have surrounded me, trying to flatter me. Wanting me for my money, my looks. You of all people understand what it is like wishing for someone to like you for who you are." I nodded, but sighed.

"But Charles, you didn't even know me when you first approached me. Why then?" I asked, and he looked away.

"I think I was drawn to you because somehow I sensed your determination, your will to succeed in your dancing. I saw a lot of myself in you, strange as it sounds." He looked at my trembling hand holding the locket. "Do you want me to put it on for you?" I nodded, not really knowing what else to say.

"Th-Thanks…" I said and turned back to face him, tears still running down my cheeks. In fact, they hadn't stopped.

"I don't know if I can fall in love…" I said finally, after he held me. He put a finger to my lips to hush me.

"Madeleine, I am not asking you to marry me. I am only asking that you give me a chance to prove to you that I will not hurt you. I promise." He looked down at me with such sincerity that for just a moment, I felt like everything would be fine from then on, but a little voice in the back of my mind warned me about things that were too good to be true.

"Look, you don't have to do this if you feel sorry for me…I'll understand…" I said, my fear worsening. Mama's words ringing in my head. _Let yourself be happy._"I don't need pity, I don't want you to-"

I was cut off because his lips had come down on mine finally. After so many times it had almost happened, this was the glorious climax of our time together. It was not a deep kiss, just a simple pressing of the lips together, but still we held together, eyes closed. My arms had even found my way to his neck. We pulled apart, breathless and he held me against his chest, both of us staring out into space and we must have been standing like that for a long time because neither of us had heard Charles's father and Therese come in.


	22. Chapter 22

CHARLES

"Oh dear! Were we interrupting something?" Therese asked, her arms full of linens. I looked down at Madeleine, who flushed and laughed.  
"No Therese, Dad. I just decided to give Maddie one of her gifts early." I replied and Dad nodded, coming toward us.  
"Let's have a look, shall we ?" Dad said, his eyes twinkling as he stepped forward to Maddie. She stood so he could have a clear look at the locket and held it out for him. Instead of his customary smile, however, he went white as a sheet, the twinkle gone from his eyes.   
"C-Chloé?" He asked, reading the name. She nodded and he pursed his lips tightly together.  
"Where did you get this Madeleine?" He asked and suddenly I was frightened of the way he was reacting. I'd never seen him like this.  
"I-It was my mother's Raoul, why?" She asked, obviously just as confused as I was and opened the locket for him to see the picture.

He drew in a long breath, but suddenly smiled.  
"No reason whatsoever dear, I just was confused as to why your locket said another woman's name! I was ready to berate dear Charles for two-timing you!" He laughed, maybe a bit too forced. She laughed too though, a bit uneasily. Dad suddenly motioned for Therese to follow him.  
"Well, I'll leave you two alone..." He said, "See you both at dinner." With that, he was gone with Therese, practically running out the door.  
"There is something going on here...secrets are everywhere." Madeleine said, sinking to the sofa. I nodded.  
"But what would he know of your mother?" I asked her and she looked up, dread in her eyes.  
"Remember Charles, my mother was a prostitute...but he wouldn't have...he loved your mother too much..." I shrugged, knowing it was impossible.

"Madeleine, I grew up in England. Your mother lived here in Paris." I said, and she nodded, something suddenly clicking.  
"Charles, I do get my looks from my mother. We resemble each other greatly. Maybe he was just jarred because she looks like your mother." It suddenly made sense.  
"Yes, maybe." I said, but still thought to myself. _He said the name before he saw the picture._ He was only reading it. I was digging too far into this. Dad would never betray Mother. He worshiped her, and she'd loved him. Their marriage had been flawless. Hadn't it?

I sat beside Maddie, who was staring into the fireplace. Suddenly, my thoughts were replaced by the kiss we had shared. Finally. I had done it and she hadn't stopped me. The fire surrounded her chestnut hair with an amber glow, making her seem ethereal. I could tell she was afraid to talk about what had happened between us, but I decided to make it easier and took her hand in mine.  
"Things are different now, Charles, aren't they?" She said, looking at me, her eyes softer than I had ever seen. I nodded at her.  
"They are." I said and she sighed. I dared to touch one of her curls and she smiled nervously.  
"Was it just a kiss then? Do we go back to the way we were?" She asked, suddenly full of questions and I shrugged.  
"It's up to you Madeleine...I sincerely hope it wasn't just a kiss to you, because it wasn't to me...and it was my first kiss." She nodded.  
"It wasn't just a kiss to me either." She said, but I could still see her fear.

"Look, why don't we just take it one day at a time? We can keep it a secret for a little while...like Dan and Deirdre." I smirked. She laughed.  
"How did you find out?" I rolled my eyes.  
"Neither of them can keep their mouths shut..." I said dryly and she laughed again.  
"Poor Deirdre...she's so excitable...I love her dearly." Maddie said and I agreed. How could anyone not like Deirdre Bennett. She was beautiful, funny, smart...perfect for my cousin Daniel. I thought of her as more of a little sister than a woman though, and was just as wildly protective over her as I was over my three cousins.  
"It's settled then," I said, "We'll keep it quiet for a bit and just take things at an even pace, for I am not really sure what to do either."

We sat quietly for a few moments, holding hands until she finally said.   
"I didn't know you grew up in England." She said and I laughed.  
"My parents left Paris just before I was born. Mother had to have this controversial surgery there when I was born called a Cesarean section...they weren't sure she would live. They never really explained why they moved there, but it was my home...until Mother died that is. Aunt Laney and Uncle Garrett moved there after I was born too...that's why I am so close with my cousins." Maddie looked a bit frightened.  
"I've heard of those Cesarean sections...they cut the woman open to draw out the baby..." She said, with a shiver at the thought of it.  
"They weren't sure if Mother would make it after my birth, but luckily, she pulled through."  
"I can't even imagine..." She said. "I wish I could have met her."

"She would have loved you," I said, smiling at the thought of Mother getting excited about taking care of a girl. Dressing her, fixing her hair. She and Dad had wanted a little sister for me so badly.  
"I miss my mother too..." She said, seeing my grief. I nodded. Sighing, she noticed the day was getting late and she stood.  
"I really should get a bath and change before dinner." She said and I nodded. I had forgotten about dinner.  
"Thank you Madeleine." I said, still holding her hand.  
"For what?" She asked with a laugh.  
"Trusting me to tell me the truth about you..." I said and she shrugged.

"I can't believe you still have an interest." She said and I stood to pull her close again. As we walked out of the room, I stopped with her in the doorway.  
"What?" She asked, with half a smile and, blushing, I shyly said,  
"I want to kiss you again..." She rolled her eyes, grinning.  
"Then stop talking about it and do it already!" I gladly obliged, this time daring to deepen it just a bit. I walked her up to her room and kissed her again, finally pulling away and saying.  
"Merry Christmas Madeleine..."   
"Merry Christmas Charles." Was her response as she smiled slightly and walked into her room. I walked across the hall into my own room and flopped down on my bed, unable to wipe the silly grin from my face.

"Well well well...if we aren't the grinning idiot!" Gabe said to Charles, as he entered the house with Camille on his arm, his parents close behind.  
"Are you two back on good terms?" I asked, looking at my cousin who had run into Dad's arms to kiss his cheeks. He nodded, but pulled me aside.  
"Well, it's better anyway. I found out what happened at her school. Rotten little busybodies...poor thing was just trying to give a grieving man some support and one of the little wretches walked in and assumed the worst. Then here was me, ever the comedian." I looked at my sweet cousin. Poor thing...her heart was too pure.  
"Charles...I don't know. I think I love her...crazy as that sounds. She's twelve years younger than me, hardly a woman, but she's all I think about." 

I laughed at him. He seemed out of his mind. He ran a wild hand through his mass of blonde hair.  
"Don't laugh Charles...seriously, she makes me want to get married and raise a litter of our own! I've never wanted that. I imagine sometimes what she'd look like coming down the aisle in a white gown, or how she would look with child..." I patted his back.  
"Slow down Gabe...she's hardly agreed to let you court her, much less begin reproducing!" Realizing how crazy he was beginning to sound, he laughed.  
"Sorry...I got carried away. How are things going with your pretty damsel?" He asked and I couldn't help but grin.  
"I have nothing to say..." I said and began to walk back toward the group where Maddie was standing. She gave me a small smile and waved at Gabe.  
"Like Hell you have nothing to say, you sly devil!" He cried, striding next to me.

"All I will say is Christmas is truly a wonderful time." I said and moved to kiss Millie's cheek as the door opened and my Aunt and Uncle came in with Genevieve and Rosie, along with her fiancé. Shortly after, Dan arrived with Deirdre and her whole family. Aunt Meg, Uncle William, her brother John and Granny Giry of course. Once we were all settled, Dad stood and asked everyone's attention.  
"Today we are celebrating the birth of our Lord and the many things we have to be thankful for. Our wonderful extended family, our newest addition, dear Madeleine..." Dad's eyes lingered on Maddie sadly for a moment before looking back up, "And finally to the memory of those who are no longer with us...Merry Christmas all..." He said and sat back down. We all raised our glasses and agreed. Maddie gave me a small discreet smile across from me and I returned the gesture.   
_Merry Christmas Indeed._


	23. Chapter 23

MADDIE

Christmas morning came with Charles waking me at daybreak.  
"Good morning Maddie…" He whispered, and I opened my eyes to stare into his glowing green eyes.  
"Charles…it's the crack of dawn…go back to bed." I muttered, trying to turn the other way, but he caught me and lifted me to my feet.  
"Get up sleeping beauty and bundle up…there's something I want to show you." He left me then and grumbling, I dressed and pulled a cloak and some gloves on.   
"This better be good…" I said to myself as I ran outside to meet Charles, who was waiting for me on his horse.  
"You want me to get on that thing?" I asked, a bit overwhelmed. I had never touched a horse, much less rode one. He got down to help me up so that I was sitting in front of him with his arms around me.

"Where are we going?" I asked, holding the hood of my cloak to my head to shield the cold wind. Snow was falling heavily as the first signs of daylight showed. We stopped in front of the Opera and Charles tied the horse before helping me down. Grinning, he took out a silk scarf and came toward me.  
"What are you doing?" I asked him, backing away and he grabbed my waist, saying,  
"You can see until the right moment." I let him lead me through the opera blindly, we must have gone up four flights of stairs until I felt the cold on my face again. We're on the roof. I realized, and let him lead me to stand against the side. I felt him holding me with me in front of him and yawned, still exhausted and a bit grumpy.  
"Can I see yet? It's cold…" I knew I was whining…but at this time of the morning, I simply didn't care.  
"Just a few more minutes." He said, and I felt him kiss my cheek.

I sighed heavily, almost falling asleep against him until I felt him taking the scarf off of my eyes.  
"Ready?" He asked and I nodded.   
"Yes…I've been ready." I said, and he said,  
"Look then." When he removed my blindfold I almost had to gasp. The sparkling snow was falling lightly as the brilliant pink and orange from the sunrise filled the sky, making the falling snow look like magic bits of fairy dust that you could only read about in romance novels and fairytales.  
"Oh my God…Charles…this is the most amazing thing I have ever seen." I said, and he nodded.  
"I have always loved the sunrise and this morning I thought, what if we saw it from the roof? I wanted to share it with you as kind of a rising of whatever we share together." I blushed, never having dreamed that a man would speak to me so poetically.

As I stood back and looked at him, he looked very close to how he had in my dream. His cloak blowing in the wind, the serene look in his eyes.   
"I was wrong about you Charles de Chagny…" I said, smiling into the wind as the sun rose slowly, illuminating his face.  
"What do you mean?" He asked, and I reached out to take his extended hand. "You are nothing but an angel…" I stepped into the warmth provided partly from his cloak and from his body, my hood blowing off and my curls wild in the wind.  
"Merry Christmas…" He said drawing his cloak around both of us and leaving our faces a mere inch apart.  
"Charles when I am with you I feel so…so…" I didn't finish because he kissed me for the second time, this time a deeper more passionate kiss.  
"Let's go back…" He whispered and pulled me back toward the door inside. I took one last look at the falling snow before we went back into the empty opera house.

When we returned back to his home, Raoul was waiting for us in the sitting room sipping tea and speaking with Therese and Martin, her husband. When he noticed us, he smiled, coming to hug each of us and I may have imagined it, but he hugged me a bit longer than I had expected.  
"Merry Christmas Raoul…" I said and he grinned.  
"And to you too dear girl…" Charles gave him a tight embrace as well as we sat to open gifts. Charles had bought his father a box of cigars and a bottle of brandy and had received some art pencils and oil paints. Raoul loved the pens I had bought him, saying he was just in need of some new pens. Of course, I blushed. I became extremely nervous when Charles opened his gift from me. His blank score. As he unwrapped it, he breathed in awe as the gold thread that I had sewn his name with shined brightly in the morning sunlight.

"Maddie…" He said, and I could see he had become choked up. "This is perfect…" He said.  
"You didn't have to…"  
"I wanted to." I interrupted and he beamed, pulling me into his arms tightly.  
"You are something else you know." He said, kissing my cheek. Raoul smiled lovingly at Charles.   
"Your mother would have loved this." He said, running a hand through his hair and Charles nodded.  
"She would have…music was her world." Charles said shakily, smiling for a moment before breathing and turning back to me.  
"So you did care for me before..." He whispered and I nodded, biting my lip. I was still nervous about giving him a chance, but I was determined to do it right. No lies. Before I could say a word, he kissed me right in front of his father and housekeeper! My eyes went wide, but I didn't pull back since it was a short kiss.

"Then there is something between the two of you..." Raoul said, a smile in his eyes. Naturally, I turned all shades of red as Charles nodded.  
"Can we just keep this between us though Dad? We're kind of trying to take it slow." He explained and Raoul gave him a nod.  
"I understand. Of course we can keep it to ourselves. Well, are you going to give the girl her gift or what?" He asked and I shook my head.  
"But he's already given..." I started, but Charles had already reached for the last package under the tree. I looked at him in confusion but he just smiled and handed it to me. It was small, but I could tell it was a frame of some sort. I unwrapped it quickly and gasped at what stared back at me. _Mama._

"Charles...?" I managed to squeak and he grinned. It was a perfect charcoal portrait of her right down to the sparkle in her eye and the way the locket hung around her neck. Her light hair hung down gloriously, and her smile was beaming just the way I remembered her before she died. God she was beautiful...and seeing her brought all of the pain of losing her back.  
"What is it Charles?" Raoul asked, trying to see and he gently took the portrait from me and held it up for his father to see.  
"Chloe..." He mouthed, but Charles didn't seem to notice. The expression on Raoul's face hurt my heart. It was as if he had seen a ghost. He looked away, nodding as if it were nothing special, but I had seen. If I had doubted his recognizing her before, my mind had been changed. He knew my mother somehow and one way or another, I was going to find out how, just not today.

"So I suppose tonight I will return to the opera." I said as I walked hand in hand through the Chagny mansion. He stopped abruptly and I almost fell.  
"Leave? But...don't you like it here?" He asked and I nodded, but frowned.  
"Yes I love it here Charles, but I am not comfortable with taking advantage of your family's hospitality like this...I have no right." The truth was, I hated the thought of leaving, but the longer I stayed, the harder it would be to leave.  
"Taking advantage of us? Look around yourself Maddie, no one is pushing you out. Dad is overjoyed to hear a lady's voice in the house again, wearing Mother's clothes...they're only drawing dust! I've never seen him smile so much. And you know full well how I feel about you..." He said, drawing me in for a kiss.

"I'll never be used to this..." I said, standing within his arms and he grinned.  
"Then I suppose I shall just have to start trying to convince you..." He buried his face into my hair. "Stay...please. At least until after the ball. Then I'll consider letting you leave." He said, with that devilish look in his green eyes.   
"You'll consider _letting_ me leave? Are you keeping me against my will?" I asked, pulling back teasingly and he laughed richly.  
"Absolutely. If I have to lock you in a room I will. I'll torture you until you agree." I gave a short light laugh and rolled my eyes.  
"I'll spare you the pain...I'll stay, but only until next week. The opera is going to think I've been kidnapped! I haven't told anyone where I am you know..." He shrugged.  
"Let them wonder..." He said, eyes sparkling. What else could I do but laugh?


	24. Chapter 24

GRRR...sorry guys I am on crap mode lately...

CHARLES

"We will be putting on _Il Muto_ after the New Year...this season will be a complete repeat of the 1881 season, since it's our twenty-fifth anniversary here." M. Andre said to Dad and I at our Christmas party that night. I scanned the room for Madeleine, who was standing beside Deirdre laughing at something she had said. The way she looked when she laughed...I would never forget it. She threw her head back and half closed her eyes, a magical sound emerging from her. I knew I was grinning like an idiot at her, but I didn't care. These past two days still seemed unreal to me. She'd agreed to give me a chance to prove to her that she could be happy. I turned my attention back to the managers.  
"Will you be casting Benedetta as Countess?" I asked, eyeing Maddie and receiving a strange look from M. Andre and M. Firmin.  
"Naturally...she is leading soprano..." Firmin replied and I almost cringed.  
"Not to offend, but don't you think she's a little old to play the part? Not to mention the fact that her range isn't high enough..."

"Charles!" Dad said, a bit shocked at my bluntness. Realizing what I had said, I ran a hand through my hair.  
"I'm sorry...I don't know what came over me...it isn't my place to tell you how to run your opera.." The managers chuckled.  
"Quite alright dear boy..." Firmin said and I stole a look at the prima donna herself, wondering if the London opera had received my letter yet.  
"Anyhow...of course, you will be playing her husband, the Count." Andre added, a bit nervously.  
"That's reassuring..." I muttered as Benedetta fluttered her eyelashes at me. I wanted to wince. Dad, seeing this, chuckled.  
"We were thinking of putting Miss Denton in as the pageboy..." M. Firmin stated and I looked up at him.  
"The silent role?" I said, unable to hold back the disdain in my voice. 

Together, they nodded.  
"Have you ever heard her sing?" I asked, curiously and they both shook their heads.  
"She's in the chorus..." Andre said, and I raised an eyebrow.  
"Never judge a book by its cover." I said and moved away from them to join Maddie, Deirdre and Daniel.  
"...Then Granny told me if she ever caught me disobeying Ma again she would beat me with her cane!" Deirdre explained as Daniel and Maddie laughed.  
"Charles! Merry Christmas!" Deirdre said, kissing my cheek, a gesture I repeated before shaking Dan's hand.  
"Is Gabe here yet?" I asked him and he rolled his eyes.  
"He and Millie left our house fighting the whole way out. Hopefully, they haven't killed each other yet. He doesn't know what he's getting himself into."

"Oh yes I do..." A familiar male voice came from behind me. I turned to see my cousin and Gabe standing there, smiling lightly.  
"He hasn't gotten into anything yet...we're just friends." Camille stated firmly and Gabe's eyes darkened a bit, but he held his smile.  
"Yes, friends..." He said and Maddie smiled at him sympathetically. Camille looked at him in an odd way before moving to talk to her mother, who was standing with Uncle Garrett and Dad as Deirdre and Dan went to greet Aunt Meg.  
"I don't know what to do…it's like she's afraid to trust me." Gabe said, defeated and Maddie touched his arm.  
"She is Gabe, but maybe you should talk to her…about school I mean. Something happened there…and I am sure you've all heard the rumors…poor girl." Maddie sighed, "Look at her, she's just the sweetest little thing and people just ripped her to shreds."

"What did they do to her?" I said, my voice suddenly dark with worry. Maddie shook her head.   
"It's not my place to tell…I promised her." She said and I couldn't hold back a smile at her innocent loyalty. She blushed and excused herself to go find Granny Giry.  
"You are head over heels, struck dumb in love with that girl aren't you?" Gabe laughed, noticing me watch her walking away.  
"I am not in love with her…it's much too early for that." I said. That is to say, I had _feelings_ of love _for_ her, but I was not _in_ love _with_ her…was I?  
"Relax you little love struck pup…I am only kidding." Gabe chuckled, scanning the room again for Millie and sighing when he found her.  
"Yeah yeah…_I'm_ the love struck pup…" I muttered and he slapped my back heartily.   
"You said it, not I…" He teased, getting a strange look when he saw my father shifting uncomfortably next to Aunt Laney. 

"Hey Charles…did are Laney and your Dad fighting or something?" He asked me and I noticed Dad fidgeting with the cuffs of his sleeve. Dad never squirmed. He kept looking over at someone, but I couldn't tell who since there were so many people in the room. Something had been bothering him all day as a matter of fact. I strode over to him with Gabe close in tow.  
"Dad…are you alright?" I asked and he looked at me, surprised.  
"Yes Charles…of course." He said, looking confused. I followed where he had been gazing again, but all I saw was Maddie talking to Granny Giry. She waved at us and I winked at her. Finally, the orchestra began to play and people began to dance.

Camille surprised me by coming up behind Gabe and I and grabbing his hand.  
"You want to dance?" She asked and speechless, he nodded smiling slightly. She did look lovely tonight with her long gold hair pulled back into a braid, a blue ribbon braided right in with it and tied into a bow at the bottom. She wore a light blue satin dress which really made the blue of her eyes glow.  
"What about you Charles? Would you like to dance?" I turned around to see Aunt Laney standing there with her hand extended to me. I grinned at her and we began to dance to the slow song.  
"You found your inspiration I see…" She said with a laugh and I raised an eyebrow.  
"What?" She patted my cheek.  
"I can see it in your eyes. I am so glad you are doing what you love now…and I am coming to opening night of _Il Muto_ with Garrett and your father."

We danced for a few more minutes, discussing opera, when I noticed that Dad had asked Maddie to dance. I was surprised at how easily he'd grown fond of her, but I supposed that it was just because she looked so much like Mother.  
"Madeleine really is a lovely girl…" Aunt Laney said, also noticing her. I nodded and Aunt Laney winked at me.  
"You really like her don't you?" She said and I shrugged.  
"She's nice…" I said, trying to keep it casual and she messed up my hair as the song ended.  
"Merry Christmas dear Charles…and stop lying to yourself will you? It's obvious you have eyes only for her." She rejoined my uncle, kissing him on the cheek as I shook my head.

I headed straight for Madeleine after Dad had kissed her forehead and walked off with Aunt Meg and Uncle Will. Granny Giry was also standing with her.  
"Oh Charles dear, Merry Christmas…I hadn't gotten over to you yet…" I kissed her cheek, trying to ignore how pale she was.  
"Granny…are you feeling well?" I asked, a bit concerned for her health. She waved it off.  
"Fine fine dear…nothing to worry over. I've just been a bit tired…this old body isn't what it used to be." I laughed, but remained a bit worried. I could see the worry in Maddie's eyes too. Granny, smiled, brushing a piece of my hair from my forehead and said,  
"Oh Charles…you look so like your father…"

Instantly my eyes snapped open wide and I stepped back.  
"What?" I said, and Maddie stepped forward.  
"Are you sure about that Madame Giry?" She asked hesitantly, looking over at Dad's blue green eyes and light brown hair. Granny, realizing her mistake, brought a hand to her cheek and said,  
"Oh dear me…I meant to say your mother's father…we were best friends you know, Gustave and I…" She excused herself quickly and practically ran over to Aunt Meg.   
"I've seen my mother's father…" I said to myself, but Maddie heard me.  
"Oh? Do you look like him?" She asked and I looked down at her big sparkling hazel eyes.  
"No…no I don't."


	25. Chapter 25

BIG BIG CHAPTER HERE!

MADDIE

"Come in!" I called at the knock of my door, still staring at the strange undergarment I was supposed to wear to the ball in a few hours. A corset. Never having been to a party or even wearing a gown, I had never even seen one up close. I put it on and attempted to tie it, but ended up with a point in my face. Therese came into the room with a pair of pink slippers and began to laugh.  
"Oh sweet Madeleine…you poor thing, let me help!" She smiled and helped me take the crooked thing off. "It was upside down darling…" She said and placed it around me, quickly lacing up the back and tying it tightly. I gasped, feeling like all the air in my lungs was being pushed out.  
"Your waist is just as tiny as the viscountess's was…" The lady said softly as I fought for air.

Therese put a white silk dressing gown around me and motioned for me to follow her.  
"Let's get you something to eat dear girl…" She said and I muttered,  
"I can't even breathe, how the hell should I eat." It was strange sitting down, because I was suddenly sitting with proper posture and eating like a bird. I heard Charles come into the room and chuckle.   
"Afternoon Maddie…" He teased and I gave him a look.  
"Good afternoon Charles…" I shot back. Raoul was not far behind and bit back a smile when he saw me.  
"You two all ready for the ball?" He asked and we both nodded. "Charles do you even have something to wear?" Charles nodded.  
"I dug something suitable out…" 

"Oh?" Raoul asked, adjusting his coat.  
"It's a surprise…" Charles added.  
"I see…" Raoul grinned, winking at me. Before I could eat another bite, Therese was sweeping me back up into my room where two young girls waited.  
"Jennifer and Anastasia here are going to do your hair as I help you dress." She explained and I nodded. It was strange to be waited on. First they pinned my hair and wove ribbon through it as I stepped into the dress and was buttoned into it. Therese then knelt down and slipped the pink slippers on my feet as the girls began to remove the pins from my hair, releasing perfect curls.  
"Oh…" I whispered, looking into the mirror. Therese nodded.  
"You are beautiful…" 

I stared at myself in the full length mirror and tried to imagine Charles's mother staring at herself this very way. The dress had a lace trim at the neck line and fit snugly until the waist where it billowed out and the back had a train with three bustles. At the waist was a pink silk rose. I slipped on the elbow length white gloves with gold trim and left the room to meet Raoul in the foyer. He smiled up at me as I descended the staircase, offering me his arm.   
"Charles is going to meet us there." He said with a tight sad smile. I nodded and he helped me get into the carriage. We rode in an awkward silence, and I noticed Raoul kept staring at my locket. Instinctively, my hand came up to it. We came to a halt outside the lit up opera house.

Raoul got out first and helped me down, as I looked nervously at all the people standing around. He went on ahead to the coat person and gave them his coat. I removed my own white cloak and walked into the party which was alive with dancing, music and candlelight. When people noticed me, they would stop and whisper to each other. Especially the older people. Suddenly I felt extremely self conscious and leaned over to Raoul.  
"What do I do? Everyone is staring at me…" He took my arm gently and patted it.  
"You're fine…just be yourself." I clung to his arm like a little girl clings to her father. I noticed a familiar flash of blonde hair as Deirdre dragged Daniel out onto the dance floor.   
"He hates it…" Laughed Raoul, watching his nephew. I giggled as Daniel pleaded with his eyes and looked to Gabe for help. Gabe only laughed, swinging Camille around with ease.  
"Look, she's torturing him!" I laughed as Deirdre noticed me and winked. 

I turned to see Madame Giry walking over to us, using her cane as usual now. She had a bad case of arthritis in her knee.   
"Madeleine my dear! You look lovely…I'm so glad to see that gown being reused…it was Christine's favorite you know…" Raoul smiled.  
"Yes I remember…she never wore it again, but she would sometimes pull it out and hold it to herself just to see it. I always thought it was such a shame she never wore it again. She'd saved her money for it. I offered to buy it for her, but you know Christine…stubborn as a bull." Madame Giry laughed, remembering obviously.  
"Once when she was nine, I offered to put her hair into braids and tie them with little pink ribbons, but she'd said in her tiny voice, 'No thank you Aunt Annie, I've got it.' She came out about an hour later with two lopsided little braids tied messily with pink ribbon. She was so proud. I'll never forget that!"

I laughed as Gabe and Camille came up behind us and he lifted me, startling me and spinning me around.  
"Happy New Year Madeleine…" He said, feigning getting ready to kiss me when Camille hit his arm.  
"You libertine…" She said and he bent to kiss her cheek.  
"I'm only kidding dear Millie…I will wait until Midnight," He said, winking at me and giving Madame Giry a quick hug.  
"Well that's certainly an interesting mask Gabriel…" She observed. It was intimidating. It was black and went diagonally across his face with a bit of gold trim around the edges. Camille wore a daintier version which just covered the top part of her face. Mine of course was a handheld mask. Hearing a more upbeat tune begin to play, Gabe wrapped an arm around Camille and whisked her back out to dance.

I could only shake my head, but received the shock of my life when he dared to kiss her. Of course, she slapped him but a minute later, she had blushed and was smiling at him. They walked off to the side with his arm around her. Benedetta had planted herself right between the managers and was pouting because they each had one of the ballerinas on their arm. _Stupid little gold diggers…_I was ready to ask Raoul if he'd like to dance when the music stopped abruptly and a few gasps was heard.  
"Oh Jesus, Mary and Joseph…" I muttered, but turned my head to see none other than a man in a full red costume with that skull like mask. He descended upon us all like a graceful cat, his dark hair slicked back, his cape trailing behind him. Everyone had froze and I looked around, almost laughing at their silliness. Without hesitation I strode over to the stairs as he had almost reached the bottom and stared up into those green eyes. For a minute, he seemed another person, his eyes just bearing into mine…and I was frightened, but only for a moment until he grinned.

"Charles? Is that you?" I asked and he pushed the mask back, revealing his face and confirming it was indeed him. I smacked his arm.  
"You bastard…you are a tricky little sneak…" He shrugged, pulling the mask back down.  
"I try…" He said, taking my arm and walking over to Gabe and Millie. Raoul and Deirdre's mother were clinging to each other as if they had seen a ghost. Madame Giry was eyeing Charles suspiciously. People returned to what they had been doing, the music swelled again, but something was going on in here. Charles guided me toward the rest of the guests and spun me around.   
"Come on Maddie! Let's dance!"


	26. Chapter 26

CHARLES

"Damn Charles…that is a quality costume, we almost didn't recognize you " Gabe said, laughing as the party began to gain momentum again.  
"Where did you get it?" Camille asked, and I looked down at Maddie.  
"Let's just say I stumbled on it about a week ago." I said, grabbing Maddie's arm.  
"Charles, your father looks a bit drained, is he alright?" Maddie asked and I looked at Dad, who was smiling and laughing but it did look a bit forced.  
"Come on, let's go talk to him." I said and we moved toward where Aunt Meg, Granny Giry, Uncle Will and Dad were talking. Granny was eyeing us suspiciously but with a faint smile on her face.  
"Charles…well well well…I see you did clean out that old room " She laughed and I stole a glance at Dad, who had stopped smiling.  
"We found it in a heap on the ground. I couldn't throw it out…the material is so nice."

"It is nice…" Granny agreed as Maddie walked over to Dad.  
"Are you alright Raoul?" She asked and he nodded, patting her shoulder.  
"Fine dear…just fine. That's um…some outfit you have there Charles " He said and I looked down at myself. I thought it was perfect. It was a masquerade after all, was it not? The awkward moment was interrupted with Dan asking if he could have a moment. Everyone looked at him expectantly. He grinned, putting an arm around Deirdre.  
"I guess it's no secret now that Deirdre and I have been seeing each other…but we wanted to wait until everyone was together to tell you all that she has agreed to marry me." My jaw dropped I think, with everyone else's. Aunt Meg cleared her throat.  
"Well…that was fast…" Aunt Laney said, looking up at Uncle Garrett who shrugged.  
"I know it was fast Mom…but I've known since we began to court that she is the one for me."

Deirdre looked over at her parents and her mother nodded at her, smiling a bit nervously but still seemed happy for Didi. Uncle Will looked a bit less amused but kissed her cheek and shook Dan's hand. I motioned for Maddie to follow me and led her away from the crowd to get some fresh air.  
"What a night " She said as we got outside the doors. I pushed the mask back off my face again and sat on the steps on the opera house.  
"Indeed…" I said, looking up at the clear cold sky. She sat beside me and pointed ahead.  
"Make a wish Charles…shooting star." I looked down at her smiling innocent face.  
"But it already came true." I said and she looked over at me, so I took the first chance and kissed her. She pulled back at looked at me confused, biting her lip. "What?" I asked and she shook her head.

"Why me Charles? Why not Deirdre or Bella or one of the other girls? Why me?" I smiled.  
"As much as I cherish Deirdre, she is like a little sister to me. As for why I was drawn to you, it was your inner beauty. Yes, I said inner beauty. Bella and the other girls are very pretty, but not beautiful. Outside beauty is not what makes someone beautiful. I could see that you were a good person. It just showed, whereas when I looked at Bella, all I saw was a pretty face." I sighed. "I am just so sick of girls looking at me and only looking at me. All they care about is looks and money and you…didn't. It's nice." Maddie smiled.

"That's the nicest thing anyone ever said to me." She said, leaning against me. We weren't touching really or holding hands, but I felt very close to her in that moment. We sat silently for a moment, just staring at each other in the dim light from the party pouring outside when a single snowflake fell onto Madeleine's eyelashes. She laughed, blinking until it melted and I stood, helping her up.

I pulled the mask back down and motioned that we should probably go back inside since it was cold. She shrugged and stood, brushing off her huge pink skirt.  
"It's not so bad out here really," She said and leaned up, just barely touching my lips with hers. I pulled her close again, partially because I was freezing and partially because I just wanted to feel her close to me again when I heard a few oohs and aahs. We both turned our heads to see all of our friends standing there with big stupid grins on their faces.  
"Nice," I said rolling my eyes, "Really mature." Maddie laughed.  
"I guess you caught us..." She said quietly and Deirdre giggled.  
"Yes...because you know it wasn't _obvious_ or anything that something was going on." She said dryly, stealing a glance at her mother and grandmother. Granny Giry had a small smile on her face, for once looking really happy.

Camille ran to me and took both of my hands.  
"Charles...I have finally succeeded in life. I taught Gabriel how to dance without breaking my foot." She said, sticking her tongue out at him and I grinned, not having seen her so playful since she was a kid. Gabe pouted at her and shook his head.  
"I hate you Millie..." He grumbled and she shrugged.  
"The feeling is mutual Ames." She said, making her brother and father laugh. Aunt Laney just shook her head.  
"My daughter is a real gem, isn't she?" She laughed, nudging Uncle Garrett in the ribs. He just put his arm around her in response.  
"She sure is Lane." I looked over at Maddie, who had turned her head and was staring back out into the street.

"What is it?" I asked her and she looked up at me.  
"I...I don't know. I thought I saw something..." She shivered visibly, so I removed the cape and draped it around her. "Just imagining things..." She said as Dad motioned for us all to come back inside. As we rejoined the party, champagne glass after champagne glass was refilled, the party really came to life. We danced, some I danced with Madeleine, some I danced with Millie, Deirdre, Aunt Meg. I must not have realized how giddy we were all feeling, or how drunk any of us were. As we counted down the seconds to the New Year, I stood with Maddie at the top of the stairs in the ballroom and as the New Year came, confetti spilled out from nowhere as we kissed to the chimes of the clock and the sounds of cheers. It was a night I would never forget.


	27. Chapter 27

MADDIE

I woke up slowly, very slowly the morning after the ball, my head throbbing. As the room slowly came into focus, I realized I had no idea where I was or what had happened after the ball. I tried to pick up my head but it felt heavier. How much _had_ I had to drink last night? I stared around the room, trying to place where I was when I saw the desk with all of the art pencils and sketch paper on it. I began to get out of the bed when an arm came over and draped over me. I froze in horror, almost afraid to turn around. I lifted the covers a bit and realized I was also nude. _Oh my God._ I turned my head slightly to see Charles sleeping there with a contented smile on his face. He looked so peaceful and adorable, so I did what first came to mind as I realized just what had gone on and I screamed bloody murder waking him up with a jolt.

"What the...?" He murmured as I bolted out of the bed, taking with me the bed sheet and draping it around my body.  
"Charles!" I screamed, angry not only at him but at myself.  
"What?" He asked, wiping his eyes, still not fully awake. When he noticed me standing in front of him in nothing but his bed sheet, the color drained from his face. I looked around the room in horror, seeing all of our clothes lying on the floor. I paced furiously nearly tripping over the sheet again and again. He rose from the bed and I averted my eyes at his nakedness as he pulled on his red trousers. As he began to walk toward me, to our horror, the door opened as Therese, Raoul and Madame Giry rushed in.

"We heard a scream, we..." Raoul began, trailing off when he saw me standing there with my hand on my cheek and Charles with his mouth open. Madame Giry's gaze bore into me and I wanted nothing more than to disappear under Charles's desk. Therese almost looked amused.  
"Sir, I am going to prepare some coffee for the kids." She said, giving us one last look and suppressing a smile. Raoul was staring expectantly at Charles who looked like he was lost.  
"Alright you two...get some clothes on and come downstairs. We'll talk about this later." Madame Giry raised her eyebrow at me before coughing and following Raoul out of the room. When they had gone, Charles handed me his bathrobe.  
"Here, go change..." He said as I nodded and dropped the sheet, unthinking. He gaped at my naked body, I could feel the heat of his eyes on me like a single beam of the sun. I quickly pulled the silk robe around me and fled the room without giving him so much as a second glance.

Once in my room, I dropped to the floor behind the door and put my head in my hands. How stupid was I? I had hardly told Charles that I had feelings for him and the next thing I knew I was sleeping with him!   
"Oh God, Oh God, Oh God..." I kept repeating to myself as I paced by my bed. There was a small knock at my door.  
"Madeleine, may I come in?" Madame Giry. I closed my eyes, afraid of her wrath but sighed.  
"Of course Madame Giry." I called and the door slowly opened as her cane entered before her.  
"Are you alright dear?" She asked, sitting on my bed and motioning for me to follow suit, which I of course did. I always obeyed Madame Giry.  
"Yes...I'm fine...just painfully embarrassed." I said, unable to meet her eyes.

She draped an arm across my shoulders.  
"You remind me of my daughters. Christine was so shy and sweet and Meg of course was my little ball of mischief." She smiled at the thought. "She always kept us on our toes. I'm going to tell you something I told Christine once. We all have our moments. There's nothing you can do about them, they just happen...and you can't help how you feel about some people, but you always always have to follow your heart. Do you regret what you did?" She asked, touching my cheek. I looked down at the blue silk robe I had on, thinking. Did I truly regret it? Or would I do the same thing if I had the chance.  
"Do you?" She asked again and I looked up at her, smiling a little.   
"N-no...no I don't." I said, surprised to hear it.  
"Do you love Charles, Madeleine?" She asked, softly but seriously. That, I couldn't answer.  
"I don't know...I'm so confused and scared."

She saw my need to not think about it right now and nodded.  
"Take your time dearest. Go on now...get dressed and come have some coffee." She kissed my cheek before coughing loudly. This one sounded a bit more violent.  
"Madame Giry..." I said, worried but she waved me off.  
"I'm fine. Just getting old is all." She smiled, smoothing her almost fully gray hair back. I wasn't convinced but I wasn't going to bother her about it. As she began to leave I suddenly was compelled to ask her a question.  
"Madame Giry!" I cried and she turned, ever patient to look at me.  
"Yes love?" She asked softly. I sighed.  
"Did Christine listen? I mean, did she follow her heart?" Madame Giry got the strangest slight smile on her face.   
"No...no she didn't." She closed the door softly behind her.

I picked out a blue dress with black trimmings and put it on before attempting to brush out my mass of tangled curls. Everyone always exclaimed. "Oh Maddie you have curly hair, it is so lovely and romantic..." They wouldn't think so if they had to deal with it on a daily basis. I had longed for long straight hair like Deirdre's. Once I looked halfway presentable I took a deep breath and walked down into the kitchen where Charles and Raoul were talking quietly.  
"Just remember what I said...be careful Charles..." Raoul said, smiling when he saw me. Madame Giry had just left and Therese was keeping busy flitting about the kitchen.   
"Madeleine..." Raoul said, his voice firm but soft. He motioned for me to sit between he and Charles. I couldn't even meet Charles's eye.  
"Look...I'm sorry for everything..." I began, praying he didn't think less of me now. "But you don't have to worry because I am going back to the opera tonight." 

Charles began to protest as did Raoul but I silenced them.   
"No...this is not fair. I will not take advantage of you...and it _is_ taking advantage...you can still see me Charles, but this relationship needs to slow down. Please...it's too much." I said. I bent to kiss Raoul on the cheek and fled upstairs to pack my bag to go home tonight before either of them could say another word. If we rushed into all this so soon, we would just end up taking each other for granted and it wouldn't even mean anything anymore. Then where would we be? With a sigh, I picked up my things and ran downstairs to ask Martin if he would drive me to the opera. I knew Charles would try to stop me again, so I snuck out the back door to beg him. He, being a good hearted person, of course agreed and helped me into the carriage.  
"Thank you..." I said, offering him some coins when we stopped in front of the opera house. He shook his head.  
"No dear...keep it. I am fine..." He said. I nodded and ran into to building to get away from the cold.

As soon as they noticed I was back, Bella and a few of the other ballerinas came flying out of there rooms.  
"You're here! How was the Chagny's? Was it lovely? Are you engaged?" I felt bombarded by questions, so I simply ignored them and struggled into the nearest room, which was the old dressing room I avoided. I threw my things on the floor, but something caught my eye. A bright red rose on the vanity. I picked it up, realizing it must have been Charles since it had the same black ribbon. It couldn't be though, I had just left and he hadn't known at all.  
"You're exhausting you know..." A breathless male voice said from the corner of the room. I whirled about to see Charles sitting there with his legs crossed. 

"You...how did you...?" I began and he stood.  
"About a minute after you'd left Therese noticed you getting into our carriage outside the window so I went out and grabbed our horse. I took a few shortcuts...Maddie...why? Why did you leave without so much as a goodbye?" I sighed, not wanting to talk about it and looked down at the dusty old vanity.  
"Look...I just needed to go. After last night..."  
"I'm sorry about that." He interjected. I nodded.  
"Me too...I never wanted to...I didn't want..."  
"I know." He said, rising to come to me.  
"I'm scared Charles...it's too fast." I said, looking into the huge mirror.  
"I won't hurt you Madeleine...what do I have to do to make you trust me?"

I threw my hands up, moving away from him.  
"I do trust you Charles...it's just too fast. I wanted our first time to be special, meaningful...maybe after a long engagement. I can't even remember it!" I looked at him and he smiled.  
"You thought about getting engaged and married?" He asked and I looked down.  
"Forget I said anything..." I said as he advanced on me. I backed up against the mirror with my hands behind my back.  
"No...you do care for me...more than you let on..." He said, still grinning like an idiot. I turned my head so he couldn't get to my lips.  
"No..." I said as his lips descended but before we could kiss, I heard a small click and the glass to the mirror seemed to push back. I flew forward into his arms as we both turned our heads to see that the mirror had seemingly opened...


	28. Chapter 28

CHARLES

"What in the world!" Maddie exclaimed, clinging to me. I had completely forgotten about the mirror.

"It's some sort of secret passageway." I said, and she looked up at me. "Come on Maddie, let's see where it leads!" I said, suddenly inspired.

"But…it's dark…" She said, looking at me if I were crazy. I looked over at the candle on the vanity.

"Here…" I said, leaning over to the vanity to grab the candle. "Now it's light." I said and she rolled her eyes.

"Alright Charles…but if we see rats, it's over!" I couldn't help but laugh.

"You've got a deal…" I said and stepped through the mirror, holding her hand.

Silently, we seemed to walk forever down this passageway as it curved and turned until we came to a flight of winding stairs. I looked at Maddie in the dim light. She shrugged. I began down the stairs, slowly, unsure of what I would find there. I was surprised when I saw a slight gleaming at the foot of the stairs. Water.

"It's some kind of a lake or a river!" I said and Maddie looked at me in wonder.

"Beneath the opera house? This is so absurd!" She cried and I hesitantly stepped forward, holding her against my side. It was very slight but I could something across the lake. There was an old boat tied here at the foot of the stairs with a small lantern on it. I looked at Maddie.

"No Charles! Are you crazy?" I begged her with my eyes until she sighed loudly.

"Fine!" She said and got into the boat with my help before looked up at me. "It's comfortable!" She said, motioning to the cushions laid in it. I leaned down to light the small lantern and handing the candle to Madeleine.

"Uh Charles?" She suddenly said as I stepped into the boat, which was a gondola.

"What?" I asked, and she sighed.

"Do you even know how to move this thing?" I hesitated for a moment, because truthfully I had been in one of these once, but never had paid attention.

"Yes…we'll be fine." I lied, picking up the pole. It was surprisingly easy. With a little hidden effort I pushed us through the caverns across until we hit shore with me practically falling into the water. I covered nicely though and moved forward before I could fall backward, ending up stumbling onto the shore. Maddie gave a small snort. I leaned down to help her up, but she refused and got out herself. She lit a few of the candles that were lying around.

"What is this place?" She asked. I could only stare around with my mouth open.

"I don't know, but someone lived here…they…" I stopped cold, because on the wall were numerous drawings of a woman. My mother.

"Charles!" Maddie cried, also seeing the woman who looked so much like her adorning the walls. I began to move around the chambers observing everything. In the dim light, I noticed what was obviously an organ covered in dust and cobwebs. I pressed one of the keys, causing Maddie to nearly jump out of her skin.

"Jesus!" She said and I laughed at her.

"Sorry…" She shook her head and we began to examine random pieces of sheet music and architectural sketches when she picked up a piece of black fabric with the strangest look on her face.

"I've seen this before…" She said and I turned to look. It was a velvet cloak of some sort.

"How have you seen this before?" I asked her and she shrugged.

"I don't know…I think it was in a dream…strange." I eyed her for a moment, but held the cloak.

"Charles, look at this!" She said turning her head. I gasped when I saw numerous mannequin heads with all variations of masks on them. Four words kept running through my mind. _Architect, musician, magician, composer…_My first visit to the opera house when we had come back from England. I had been sixteen.

"_What a magnificent building! I wonder if the men who built it are still alive to marvel at their great achievement!"_

"_Erik has been dead for seventeen years…"_

"_Erik? Was he a friend of yours Dad?"_

"_Your mother knew him rather better than I." _

"_Was he an architect?" _

"_Architect, musician, magician composer-a genius in very many fields…so I was once told."_

"_I wonder why Mother never spoke of him. It's a pity he died, isn't it? I'd have liked to know him." _

"_Yes…yes, my dear boy…I rather think that you would."_

Erik! Of course! Mother's good friend! The man who had inspired me to become an architect myself! Maybe this had been his creative domain. _Oh God! _I thought, suddenly a bit uncomfortable. Had my mother's friend died down here? Was his body still here? I stole a glance at Maddie who was enraptured in some of the random sheet music and began to slowly creep around. If there was a dead body down here, I would have to get her out before she saw it too. There were a few stairs and a door, which led into a small bedroom with a huge sprawling bed in the shape of a swan. Black lace curtains hung around it elegantly and I breathed in relief when I saw there was no body on the black satin sheets of the bed! I stole a glance into the other small rooms surrounding this room. There was a bathroom and another room which looked quite like a large closet. There was an empty coffin in the middle of it. My hair stood on end.

I quickly shut the door to that room and went back into the beautiful bedroom. There was a wardrobe hanging open with endless beautiful dresses hanging in it. On the night stand next to the bed were three syringes and a bag with some clear fluid in them. Drugs of some sort. Next to the syringes was a leather bound book of some sort. The front of it read, _Don Juan Triumphant. _In the right hand corner of the book was the name _E. Destler._ Erik Destler. At least I assumed since I had assumed this was his studio, which was scarily looking more and more like it was his home too. I opened the night stand drawer to reveal a man's wedding ring and a piece of paper. I picked it up carefully and opened it.

_My heart foreseeing your condemnation, into this tomb I made my way by _stealth_, and here, far from every human gaze, in your arms I wished to die. _

I folded it back up and placed it in my pocket. How sad. How very sad, and I knew well it was from _Aida, _but it chilled me to my core. Slowly I picked up the leather bound book and opened it. It was a score. An opera. I began to read it and instantly was pulled into the story of Don Juan. I thought for a moment before leaving the bedroom and sitting at the organ. Maddie looked up at me from where she had been inspecting something, as I came toward her.

"What is that?" She asked and I smiled.

"We're about to find out." I said, motioning for her to sit next to me, which she did. I began to pound out the notes in the score on the organ, the chords and notes sometimes so violent, we became short of breath. I only played about sixteen bars, but when I had finished, I felt drained and I think Madeleine did too. We looked at each other wide eyed for a moment.

She rose, and motioned for me to follow her and I could tell by the serious look on her face that she'd found something. _Please don't let it be a body…_I prayed. I walked over to her and she pulled back the velvet curtain to reveal something I would never in all of my life forget. It was a life sized doll of my mother, and consequently Maddie, although Maddie looked different enough to where you could tell it was my mother. It was strange, in some ways, Madeleine was the epitome of my mother. But when you got up close to her and got to know her, she was a completely different person. That's when the cold realization came over me as I looked around this place, this underground home. Erik had been overwhelmingly in love with my mother, but the worst part of this realization was that I had a feeling she'd loved him too.

I turned away, sighing and sat at the organ again. Maddie came up behind me and put her arms around my neck, resting her cheek on the top of my head. It was one of the most beautiful things I had ever felt.

"Are you alright Charles?" She whispered. Her voice. Suddenly, I needed to hear her sing. I _craved _it. I looked up at her, I'm sure my eyes had gone dark.

"Sing for me Madeleine…" I said, flipping the score to _Don Juan Triumphant _open. She began to protest, but I held my hand up.

"_Sing!" _She looked at me a moment before sitting beside me again.

"Here?" She asked, pointing to the page I had opened to. "For this Aminta?" I nodded, numbly, almost not feeling like myself. Drunk with power and curiousity. I played and she began to sing, looking straight at me and hardly struggling with sight singing the notes.

"_You have brought me, to that moment when words run dry… to that moment when speech disappears into silence…silence. I have come here, hardly knowing the reason why. In my mind, I've already imagined our bodies entwining defenseless and silent. And now I am here with you…no second thoughts…I've decided…decided…"_

She stopped then, noticing the small smile on my face.

"Oh God, I'm afraid to ask…" She said, but the smile only grew bigger. "Charles…what are you thinking?" I could only grin.


	29. Chapter 29

MADDIE

"Oh God…you have that insane gleam in your eye again, the one you get when you are up to something!" I said and he laughed, taking my hands.

"I am going to show this score to Mssrs. Firmin and André!" He said and I found a nervous giggle.

"Do you think they would do it?" I asked, really not sure if the managers knew what they were doing half the time, let alone able to choose operas. Charles nodded.

"I do…and with some persuasion we could make it the last show of the season!" He said and I looked toward Heaven.

"Come on!" He said, taking my hand and the score and practically carrying me to the boat.

Once we reached the other side and the foot of the stairs, he helped me out and we walked up the winding stairs slowly. As we felt our way through the dark tunnel I ran flat into someone. A man. I let out a loud scream as Charles held up his candle. The man motioned for us to follow him into the dressing room. As we stepped back into the light, we could see him clearly. Obviously, he was foreign for he had very dark skin, eyes and hair, but his eyes were kind.

"I'm sorry to startle you…I was just…" He stopped, looking at Charles for a moment, then at me as if noticing us for the first time.

"I'm sorry but what were your names?" Charles looked at me hesitantly.

"Well…my name is Charles de Chagny and this is Madeleine Denton." The man's eyes widened at the sound of Charles's voice.

"Chagny? The very same family as Raoul and Christine de Chagny?" He asked and Charles suddenly looked a bit scared.

"Yes…they're my parents…" He said and the man nodded.

"I see…"

"How do you know my parents?" Charles asked and the man smiled slightly.

"You could say we're old friends…" He replied and Charles nodded.

"They don't really speak much of the past." He said to the man, who nodded.

"No, they wouldn't would they? Tell me my boy, how old are you?" Charles looked at me as if for help, but I shrugged and he sighed.

"I was twenty-five just this past November." The man seemed to count in his mind the months, his eyes growing wide. He shook his head as if to scold himself.

"How are your parents dear boy?" He asked and Charles smiled sadly.

"Dad is fine…Mother…well…she's dead. She died of cancer nine years ago." The man's face fell.

"That is too bad…she was lovely. A real lady…"

Charles nodded.

"What was your name again Monsieur…?" He asked and the man smiled.

"I am Nadir Khan." He stated and put his hat on, heading for the door. Charles looked at me again.

"Wait! Were you looking for someone?" He asked gesturing to the mirror. The man seemed to think about his answer for a moment, but decided against whatever he had been thinking.

"No…just visiting…I was wondering, does the good Madame Giry still live in Paris?" He asked and I nodded.

"She still lives in the same flat she always did." I said and he smiled, coming to kiss my hand.

"Thank you my dear girl…and I hope we shall all be seeing each other again sometime." He glanced at the score to _Don Juan Triumphant, _and cleared his throat before tipping his hat. With that, he left and I looked at Charles.

"What in the hell is going on here?" I asked, still looking at the door Monsieur Khan had walked through. Charles looked dumbfounded.

"I don't know…why did he look at me like that?" He asked, his eyes darkening to the point where I was actually frightened. He brightened again though, and grabbed my hand.

"Come, we must go talk to our managers!" He said and I sighed. He would do it anyway…

"M. Firmin? M. André?" He called as we approached their office. M. Firmin looked up.

"Ah, Charles! What can we do for you?" He nodded a polite greeting to me, to which I smiled back.

"Well Monsieur…we have stumbled upon an opera…it seems…" He said uneasily and Firmin held out his hands to take the score, his face morphing into an excited grin.

"_Don Juan Triumphant…_My dear André, can you believe it? We had thought all copies were lost!" André put his glasses on to come inspect it.

"Richard, you couldn't possibly consider putting this one on after what happened before, could you?" He asked and M. Firmin smiled.

"Think of the headlines! The publicity!" Charles and I looked at each other.

"This…Don Juan…it has been performed?" Charles asked and Firmin laughed.

"Why my dear boy! Of course, it was! You should know…your own mother played our Aminta." My mouth dropped. Charles began to cough.

"My mother…" He said, as if he had to hear it again. André nodded.

"Indeed…she was a brilliant performer…it is too bad though that the show had to come to such an abrupt end." He sighed and my hands came to my face.

"W-why?" I asked, almost afraid of the answer. Firmin sighed.

"Dear God, I would have thought this story was legend in the opera. This was the night of the famous disaster. Mademoiselle Daaé was stolen from the stage when she revealed the face of the ghost!"

"_What?"_ We both said in horror. The men nodded.

"The chandelier fell that night. Four people died, not to mention Ubaldo Piangi! Our Don Juan!" Firmin added.

"People _died?_" I asked, terrified. I had heard whispers about the legend of the opera ghost but never anything like this. Madame Bennett did not permit such silly gossip. The men nodded their response before Firmin gasped, looking at me.

"My dear girl! Can you sing?" He asked and I looked at Charles.

"What?" I asked, not understanding.

"Can you sing?" I began to tremble, suddenly feeling very afraid and very helpless.

"Yes she can…" Charles answered for me, a smile in his eyes. I looked at him, frightened.

"Interesting…" André mused.

We were interrupted by the sound of Raoul's voice.

"M. Firmin! M. André!" We all turned to look at Raoul, who had gone completely white.

"There you two are! I've been trying to find you!" He cried desperately.

"What's going on Dad?" Charles asked, walking to his father.

"Raoul, you look like you've seen a ghost." I said and he smiled tightly.

"Not quite." He replied. "I was worried. You two have been missing for two hours. Charles said he would be home within the hour…" His eyes fell to the score that lay on the managers desk then back up to Charles's green eyes.

"Something came up…" Charles offered. Raoul then looked at me and I couldn't meet his eyes. Somehow, I felt we had betrayed him in going down into that lair with all of those sketches of Christine de Chagny.

"Actually Monsieur le Vicomte, we were just ready to audition young Madeleine here for a part in this opera." M. Firmin said and I looked at Charles then back at the managers.

"I'm sorry?" I said, fearing I hadn't heard correctly and they laughed.

"Well, Benedetta couldn't very well play the part of a young virgin peasant girl, now could she?" To my surprise I almost laughed.

"Not to mention that you do bear a striking resemblance to the late Vicomtess." I stiffened. So the only reason I would be considered was because I looked like someone I had never met.

"No, I don't want any part in this plot!" I said and began to storm out of the room, but Charles caught me around the waist.

"Oh yes you do!" He said in a commanding voice.

"Look Charles, I don't want to always be compared to your mother! She was amazing apparently and I'm, well…I'm just not." I said, looking at Raoul who looked so sad I could have cried. Charles shook my shoulders.

"How can you say that? Do you honestly think you are anything less than that? God _damn_ it Madeleine, do you honestly think I would waste my time if I didn't think you were worth it?" Tears came to my eyes and he shook me even harder.

"Please," He begged, almost in tears himself. "Please…you've worked so hard over the past month. You_ deserve_ this!" His sincerity moved me.

"Alright…" I sighed, "I will audition for this Aminta." The truth was I was scared to death. I'd never even had lines or anything in an opera much less played a lead. Soon I would be playing the silent role of the pageboy in _Il Muto, _but that was nothing.

"Wonderful! We shall go inform M. Evans while you prepare!" I nodded, pulling a curl out of my face. Raoul walked over to us.

"Where did you two find that?" He asked us and I looked down at my feet. Charles sighed.

"We were in that old dressing room and the mirror opened. I know it sounds crazy but it did!" He said and Raoul nodded, obviously knowing full well it had.

"And you went through it." He said, closing his eyes, obviously a bit upset. "I knew it would come…"

"What Dad? What are you talking about? You mean we would find Erik's home?" He asked and Raoul looked up.

"Relax Dad, you told me about him yourself. Mother's good friend who built this opera." Raoul sighed in immense relief making me narrow my eyes.

"Yes…your mother's friend."

"Raoul?" Madame Giry's voice came from down in the great foyer.

"Madame Giry?" He asked, running out to greet her. She too, looked a bit peaked.

"You will never believe who I have just seen…" She said, stealing a glance at Charles and I.

"Nadir Khan perhaps?" Raoul asked and she nodded. He came to my house. Their voices dropped to low whispers.

"Why does it seem like someone is always trying to hide things from me?" Charles asked, suddenly a bit angry. I took his hand.

"I don't know Charles…" I said as they walked over to join us. Madame Bennett and Deirdre were close behind, coming into the doors.

"Maddie! You are auditioning?" Madame Giry asked after Raoul had told her. I nodded, gulping.

"I suppose…" I said meekly and Charles squeezed my hand.

"You'll be _fine, _I'll be right there with you the entire time." I tried to breathe.

"We'll be in the audience…" Raoul informed me, touching my cheek before leading the three ladies into the theatre.

"Come on Maddie…time to get your chance!"

Ten minutes later I was situated on the stage as some of the ballerinas and chorus members assembled in the audience. _Great, just great…_ Charles stood in the wings looking nervous himself. They instructed me to sing the aria from Hannibal, _Think of Me._ Thank God. At least I knew it well. M. Evans began to play the piano and to my horror, I could not find my voice, but I began to sing very softly.

"_Think of me, think of me fondly when we've said goodbye…"_

I felt sick, staring out into the faces of all my peers who would soon be laughing in my face. I gulped.

"_Remember me once in a while, please promise me you'll try…"_

Suddenly, I felt a warm hand close over mine and found myself looking up at Charles.

"Don't take your eyes off of mine…" He said, his green eyes dark and intense. I nodded, trying to breathe, feeling the confidence rise in my body. I stood a bit taller. It was only us now back in that dinghy old storage room.

"_When you find that once again you long to take your heart back and be free, if you ever find a moment, spare a thought for me…" _

The room was hushed as I went on, still looking into the green abyss of Charles's soul.

"_We never said our love was ever green, or as unchanging as the sea, but if you can still remember, stop and think of me…think of all the things we've shared and seen. Don't think about the way things might have been. Think of me, think of me waking, silent and resigned. Imagine me, trying too hard to put you from my mind. Recall those days, look back on all those times, think of the things we'll never do. There will never be a day when I won't think of you…"_

Charles broke into a grin and pulled away, motioning for me to finish the song looking at the audience. He let go of my hand and stood beside me as I finished the song and even hit the high note at the end of the cadenza with ease. When it was over, I collapsed to my knees, smiling so hard my head hurt and Charles was kneeling with me as Deirdre and a few of the other girls rushed onto the stage.

"Well, my dear, you have indeed proven yourself…and if you would accept, we want to give you the part of Aminta." M. Firmin said and André nodded. I looked at Charles and smiled, unable to hide my excitement.

"I'll do it!" I cried, throwing my arms around M. André's neck. He laughed.

"Let's just hope this performance will make it the entire way through!" Both managers looked up at the chandelier which hung from the great ceiling and turned to walk away.

"What in the name of God is this!" Benedetta's voice came from the back of the theatre. She stalked accusingly up to the managers.

"_I_ am the leading soprano…not this little…nothing!" She cried. I could see Raoul roll his eyes next to Madame Giry.

"We understand dear Benedetta…but the truth is, the part of Aminta is a very young girl…a virgin pure young girl…and you are thirty-five years old." M. Firmin said.

"Yes, we must have the girl to fit the part." André agreed. Benedetta let out a growl.

"You should treat your prima donna more fairly!" She cried, holding up a letter. "The London opera has requested me to leave this place and sing for them, for a raise." Firmin shook his head, sighing.

"Benedetta, my dear woman, it is just that you are far too mature and worldly to play such a…insignificant role…" They took her to coddle her no doubt, but she stopped long enough to give me a look that could kill. I looked at Charles, who had a satisfied grin on his face.


	30. Chapter 30

I warn you now...all hell has broken loose.

CHARLES

Rehearsals for _Il Muto_ had gone by quickly and by the end of January we were ready to open. Benedetta had it in for Madeleine, however and did her best to make her life miserable, especially since Maddie had been named understudy for the Countess. So she had not left to go to the London opera. It didn't matter any more. Once everyone saw Maddie as Aminta in _Don Juan Triumphant,_ they would fall in love with her instantly. Maddie had agreed to come home with me the night she'd auditioned and stay with us both and we couldn't imagine her not being there any more. Dad cherished her as the daughter he'd never had. Monsieur Khan had been by to visit a few more times, never giving anything away except for the fact he had been very fond of my mother and father. He kept looking at me though, everyone was always watching me...what was it about me that people were fascinated by?

Maddie came into the sitting room with her newly copied score of _Don Juan Triumphant,_ going over her lines and songs to herself. I smiled, flipping to the back of the original copy with the costume sketches in it. The costume for Aminta in the second act would be lovely on her. I cringed at the thought of Benedetta wearing it. Rehearsals would start after opening weekend for _Il Muto._ Maddie looked up, noticing me.  
"Hello." She said softly. I nodded, patting the sofa next to me.  
"Are you excited about tonight?" I asked, taking her hand as she set her script down. She shrugged.  
"Nervous really...I know it's a silent role...but Benedetta...she's so horrid!" She exclaimed and I nodded.  
"She's an absolute pig..." I agreed as she leaned her head on my shoulder.

She studied the painting of an angel near the window.  
"That is beautiful..." She murmured. I smiled, thinking of Mother.  
"My Mother...she had a slight obsession with Angels..." I laughed, remembering her stories. Before she tucked me in at night, Mother would come into my room with a candle and sit on the edge of my bed and tell me stories her father had told her about the Angel of Music and Little Lotte.  
"Do you believe in Angels Maddie?" I asked her, and she looked at me.  
"No." She said softly. "No I don't." I smiled, pulling her back to sit with my arms around her as we looked at that picture.  
"Mother used to talk about them incessantly with me..." I said laughing and she looked around at me.

"Really?" She asked, intrigued and I nodded.  
"Would you like to hear a story Madeleine?" I asked her and she nodded, like an enchanted child.  
"Little Lotte thought of everything and nothing...She wheedled her mother, was kind to her doll, took great care of her frock and her little red shoes and her fiddle, but most of all loved, when she went to sleep, to hear the Angel of Music."  
"The _what?_" Maddie asked, turning to look up at me.  
"The Angel of Music silly...every great artist receives a visit from the Angel at least once in their life. No one ever sees him..."  
"The Angel is a _he?_" She interrupted again, and I laughed.

"Yes...at least that's how she told it..." I replied and Maddie bit her lip.  
"Sorry, I just always pictured angels as women...silly...isn't it?" She asked and I shrugged.  
"Michael the archangel wasn't a woman..." I said and she nodded.  
"That's true." She said and motioned for me to go on, never taking her eyes off my face.  
"Anyhow, he is only heard by those meant to hear him, when they least expect it. They are suddenly blessed by the divine voice which will call to them...the Angel came to Little Lotte. He leaned over her cradle and she was able to play the fiddle at age six better than men who played all their lives." Maddie took my hand in both of hers.  
"Do you believe in Angels?" She asked and I was dumbstruck, but I thought before I answered.  
"Yes...well, that is...I do believe my mother is an Angel now...maybe she and the Angel of Music work together!" I laughed, for once being able to talk about Mother and not feel the emptiness of losing her.

Maddie giggled.  
"I suppose you're sort of my Angel of Music, wouldn't you say?" She said and I laughed.  
"Hardly...I simply gave you some help in an old storage room...you were wonderful to begin with!" She stood up messing up my hair.  
"I'd better go start getting ready for tonight. Bathing and such!" She said, pressing a quick kiss to my cheek before spinning and running out of the room with a grin on her face, taking her score with her. About five minutes later a shrill scream came from upstairs. Dad was out for the day meeting with some old friends and Therese was off. I sprinted up the stairs, deathly worried she'd hurt herself. I found her kneeling on the floor of her bedroom, staring into her open locket.  
"Charles!" She breathed heavily. The small photo of her mother had fallen out as she took it off. She was squinting at something inside it still. I knelt beside her and took it gently from her hand.

_Remember me always...you are my heart. RC_

"Oh God..." I said, looking at her.  
"Are you alright?" I asked, touching her arm. She carefully replaced the photo.  
"I don't know...but I think that the man who is or was my father gave this to her and these are his initials." I sighed.  
"I'm sorry Maddie..." I said and she shrugged.  
"It doesn't matter...he didn't want me." She said and I looked at the locket again.  
"Maybe he didn't know...he seemed to love her." I said, and she buried her face in her hands.  
"Even if he was still alive why would he want me now after all this time? I am eighteen Charles! The scandal alone could kill him!"  
"Is he from Paris?" I asked her and she nodded.  
"I think so...Mama said she'd never been anywhere else." I took her hand.  
"Come with me." I said.

I led her into Dad's study.  
"Charles..." She said, obviously unsure of this. I patted her hand.  
"Relax...you said he was wealthy right?" I asked and she nodded. I pointed to his desk.  
"Dad has an address book...all of the wealthy men in the area are in it." I said, opening the drawer. I took out the black leather book and opened it to _C._  
"Maddie, I think I have something here! Renaud Champoux..." I said, and she looked down at it.  
"Do you think?" She asked, but pulled away. "It doesn't matter...I don't want to know..." She said, sighing and sitting in the chair to look at the book herself. She began to close it, but stopped at the inside cover which read.

_Property of Raoul de Chagny._

She sighed and closed it. As I put it back in the drawer, I noticed the bottom drawer of his desk was open. It was always locked. Curiosity got the best of me as I knelt down to get a better look. There were a few things in it. A folded slip of paper, a woman's wedding ring and a double picture frame. I took out the slip of paper first and noticed there was something scribbled on it.

_My heart foreseeing your condemnation, into this tomb I made my way by stealth, and here, far from every human gaze, in your arms I wished to die._

"Jesus Christ..." I said, realizing I had read the same thing, down in the cellars of the opera, and had found then, a man's wedding ring. Could this have something to do with that same quote that I had taken and now sat, with the man's ring in my own desk drawer? I studied the ring which was really an engagement ring with a beautiful sparkling diamond. Carefully, I picked up the double frame from the shadows of the drawer, dusting it off with my sleeve as I did. Maddie came to kneel beside me. As the portraits came into view I felt my heart stop. It was a man and a woman. The man was nearing middle age, it was obvious and the woman was still very young in this photo. The worst part of it was, the man was me. Everything about it was identical, besides the slight crow's feet at the corners of his eyes. I opened the picture frame and slide the portraits out to look at the back of them.

_Charles Destler, 1845  
Madeleine Destler, 1845_

Charles and Madeleine...Oh what cruel fate was this? Yet, the woman...she looked just like my mother and Madeleine...Wait...Destler. Destler? Erik Destler. Mother's friend. They must have been his parents, then why...why would I look like _his_ father?

_"Oh Charles, you look so like your father..." _

"Your mother knew him rather better than I..."  
"Was he an architect?"  
"Architect, musician, magician composer-a genius in very many fields…so I was once told."  
"I wonder why Mother never spoke of him. It's a pity he died, isn't it? I'd have liked to know him."  
"Yes…yes, my dear boy…I rather think that you would."

I fell to the floor, nearly dropping the frames. _Dad...what have you been hiding?_ It hurt, it felt like my heart had been ripped out of my chest. I couldn't breathe.  
"Charles..." Maddie's voice brought me back to reality. I fell against her. "Come on Charles...we have to get ready..." She said solemnly, helping me up. We placed everything carefully back into the drawer and left the room. I felt very old...my body hurt as Maddie helped me to my room and I let her dress me. She held my face as I stared blankly ahead. Words were ringing through my head, I was trapped in my own mind.  
"Listen to me Charles...please...it will be fine...your father will be home soon, and we'll go on to the opera." She said and I stared through her.  
"My father..." As he walked in an hour later, I felt sick. Almost as sick as I had felt the day my Mother had passed away before my eyes.  
"Dad." I whispered, looking into his teal eyes that looked nothing like mine.


	31. Chapter 31

MADDIE

What had we found in that office? Charles had gone completely pale at the sight of those photos. The resemblance to both of us had been jarring, it was true, but why had he reacted so strongly? He wouldn't even talk to me now...one name kept throbbing through my head. _Renaud Champoux..._Yet another name had caught my eye too. _Raoul de Chagny. RC, RC, RC..._Raoul knew my mother. I knew it. No...if Raoul was that man, then Charles would be my...my..._brother?_ It was too insane. It had to be Renaud Champoux. Yet, I had noticed the way Raoul looked at me since Christmas. Since he'd found out Chloe was my mother. Charles and I had gone into that office looking for answers and both had come out broken and even more confused.

We were two minutes to opening curtain as I stood beside Benedetta in my pageboy costume, she shot death looks at me.  
"You just better not get in my way..." She hissed at me as the overture ended and the curtain rose, as the two fops and the Confidante began their narration. I had to pretend to be kissing Benedetta passionately. When I pulled back a few people laughed, noticing I was really a girl playing a boy. Someone in the first few rows caught my eye though, scaring the hell out of me. It was Dupont. He sat staring at me as if trying to place me in his mind. I turned my head, trying to hide my face. I looked up at Raoul in Box Five...he smiled supportively, but frowned obviously seeing the fear in my eyes. As our scenes finished, Benedetta and I waited backstage...but she motioned for me to follow her.  
"I just need some help with something..." She said and I followed her into the old dressing room with the mirror.  
"Just here..." She said, pointing to the vanity. I went to look and she slammed the door suddenly as I heard the key in the door.

Oh God...locked in this room. Alone. I hated this room with its ghosts. I banged on the door desperately.  
"Help me! Please! Oh God! Help!" I began to sob, looking for something anything. "Please I am locked in!" I sunk to the floor rocking back and forth in the darkness. There was no light whatsoever. "Help..." I sobbed against the door.  
"Madeleine?" A voice called from the other side.  
"Raoul?" I cried, hopeful.  
"Are you in here?" He asked, and I knocked on the inside of the door.  
"Yes! I am here! That _woman_ tricked me and locked me in!" I cried, clawing at the door. Suddenly the door opened and light spilled into the blackness as I fell at his feet. He lifted me and I clung to his shirt.  
"Oh God..." I sobbed into his shirt. He held me.  
"It's alright dear Maddie...I'm here..."

"Have you found her?" Charles's voice came from just near the stage, near hysteria.  
"Yes! I've got her..." He said as the music from the ongoing opera went on. Charles breathed in relief as Raoul brought me over to him, but before I could run into his arms I pushed roughly past him and stormed into the middle of the scene onstage.  
"What the hell do you think you're doing you little worm?" Benedetta asked as the orchestra stopped playing.  
"Excuse me?" I asked, eyeing her. "You locked me in an old dressing room you washed up bitch!" I cried. The managers stood and left their own box as other company members crowded around the stage. The audience was whispering to each other furiously.  
"You think you're so wonderful with your pretty curls and your nice trim figure...well...you can't take my place! No one can!" She said and I clenched my fist, acting on instinct and pulled the horrid wig off of her head, shoving it back into her face.  
"Oh choke on it you hag!" I said, walking away and leaving her to look like a fool as the curtain closed.

I joined Raoul and Charles backstage. Charles was not playing Don Attilo in this show since that role was for an older man, he was playing the Countess's young handsome lover after the pageboy.  
"Are you alright Maddie?" He asked, checking me over. I nodded, numbly looking up at Raoul. I couldn't meet his eyes. The managers began their futile attempt to save the show.  
"And...and...we are going to pick the show back up as Mademoiselle Denton will play the Countess." Andre said and my mouth dropped. M. Firmin peeked through the curtain and motioned for me before coming and taking my arm.  
"Wait...listen..." I said before looking back at Charles. "He's in the audience!" I whispered frightened.  
"Who is?" Charles asked and I cried.  
"Dupont!"

"Ah...here she is our Miss Denton!" Firmin said, smiling.  
"Isn't she just a gem?" He asked and everyone clapped as I tried to hide behind Firmin.  
"Go get ready dear!" Andre whispered and I nodded, sprinting offstage. Madame Bennett was waiting for me.  
" Come on dear, I've lit the candles in the dressing room."  
"Where is Benedetta?" I asked fearfully and she smiled.  
"Sent away...she won't be returning...not this time." She said, satisfied as she helped me pull on the beautiful costume. The rest of the show went on without a hitch, but the whole time I felt those horrid eyes from the third row on me. When I looked up at the man, he was smiling the most evil realizing smile I had ever seen as I sung with Charles. As we took our bows I held his hand tightly.  
"Oh God...he knows Charles!" I whispered and he leaned over to me.  
"I won't let him hurt you...I promise." He looked up at Raoul who nodded his approval with a small smile and lost the smile on his own face as if remembering.

As we walked out together for the gala after the show, the managers began to clap and whistle.  
"Brava!" Andre cried. "Three cheers for the golden couple of opera!" He cried as the sea of reporters and fans surrounded us. I caught Raoul's eyes. They were so sad as he stood between Madame Giry and Madame Bennett. We fought our way through the crowds. I made sure Dupont was gone. He was. I breathed in relief.  
"You were amazing!" Raoul cried kissing my cheek. I stiffened at his touch, but still smiled at him, unwilling to think about it. Charles stood cold as stone, not talking. His usually bright green eyes icy.  
"Charles, is everything alright?" Madame Giry asked, a bit worried. He only stared at her.  
"Why shouldn't it be?" He asked and a shiver ran down my spine. Raoul looked worried and I shrugged when he looked to me for an answer.

"You look so far away." Madame Bennett said, and he looked up toward the ceiling.  
"Maybe I am..." He said, squeezing my hand before turning and walking away from us. He had run into the darkened theatre. I looked at everyone.  
"I'll um...go see what's wrong." I said and sprinted in the direction he had just gone. I found him sobbing in one of the back seats.  
"Charles..." I whispered, sitting beside him.  
"Everything I am...was...is a lie." He said, tears streaming down his face. I was so confused.  
"What are you talking about?" I asked. He looked up at me.  
"Raoul de Chagny is not my father Madeleine. Those portraits we found...Destler...that man my mother knew...Erik. Oh God...it hurts! Make it go away Maddie!" He begged, holding onto my dress.

"What are you going to do?" I asked, thinking of Raoul and how much he loved Charles. It hurt my heart, my own troubles long forgotten.  
"Nothing." He said. "I will do nothing...what can I do? Mother is dead and so is Erik! How could she?" He asked, his anger suddenly turning to his mother. I sighed.  
"It seems, we are both living our own separate similar horrors..." I said, standing.  
"What do you mean?" He asked like a child and I smiled at the irony of it all.  
"We're both discovering the horrible truths about ourselves." I said and he looked down.  
"Your eyes are different, you know..." He said and I looked at him.  
"What did you say?" I asked and he smiled.  
"Your eyes aren't like my mother's. They have a completely different shape." He said and I found it in myself to smile.  
"Thank you Charles..." I said, glad to have some sense of my own identity. I wrapped my arms around him and lay my head on his shoulder as we watched the stagehands sweep the stage in heartbreaking silence.


	32. Chapter 32

CHARLES

_Il Muto_ continued to sell out for the four weekends it ran. _Don Juan Triumphant_ was now in full rehearsals, a month away from opening. Benedetta had been long gone. I avoided the house now like the plague. I couldn't look at Dad. I felt like I had betrayed him, as if I wasn't good enough to be in his home, reaping the benefits of his name. It wore on me and soon I was only able to eat one meal a day. I lost ten pounds in three weeks. Madeleine was becoming steadily more worried, but she was distant too. Engulfed in her own downward spiral. At night I could hear her crying out for her mother as I am sure I cried for mine. Mother now haunted my dreams. Visions of she and this man...who I could never see the face of. I knew it was him though. Dad's words at Mother's funeral repeated in my mind. _She is with Erik now..._Oh Mother...I know...Why? 

"Charles?" Dad's voice came from my doorway, waking me from the nightmare once again. I picked my head up from my desk and he gasped.  
"Charles..." He said, seeing the prominent bones in my cheeks, my eyes dark and sunken with lack of sleep. My fingers were beginning to look like the bones of a skeleton.  
"What are you doing to yourself?" He said, coming to me.  
"Dad..." I said, leaning on him for support. He led me down into the kitchen where Granny Giry and Aunt Meg sat, both gasping when they saw me.   
"Charles!" Granny Giry cried, coming to examine me. I let them sit me in a chair as Maddie entered the room, letting out a small squeak when she saw me. She rushed to kneel in front of me, taking both of my cheeks in her hands.

"Oh God..." She said, tears in the corners of her eyes as Therese brought some soup out for me to eat. I waved it away, along with Maddie's hand.   
"Eat!" Therese instructed I shook my head.  
"I'm not hungry..." I stated, starting to get up but Maddie wouldn't have it. She pushed me down by the shoulders with all the might her small body could muster up and began to spoon feed me.  
"God damn you Charles...I will not have you sit here and let yourself die." She said as everyone gaped at us. "Now _eat!_" She forced me to eat and drink, her hair falling into her face as I sat limply. It was like I was watching myself deteriorate and I honestly didn't care. Dad sat with his head in his hands as she picked me up by the arms and practically dragged me out.  
"We'll see you at the opera Madame Giry..." She nodded blankly, staring at me in horror as she began to cough.

"Oh Charles..." Maddie sobbed as we rode in the carriage to the Opera. "I am so sorry...I can't believe I haven't seen this..." She said, rocking with me. "You have to eat...to live...for me...please!" She begged me over and over again. I woke up a bit, seeing the fear in her eyes. In my own selfishness I had forgotten she was seven years younger than I.   
"Madeleine..." I said, touching her cheek.  
"Please...I know...can't you see that I know better than anyone what you are going through? At least your true parents are dead. My father may still be alive...and I don't even know if he'd want me if he knew the truth." She said.  
"I'm sorry Maddie..." I said, and she began to cry kissing me over and over until our lips were swollen from kissing and from the tears falling between both of us.  
"Oh Charles, I..." She stopped, almost afraid of what she was going to say. "I am so glad you are going to be alright..." She looked at her hands.

I helped her out as we went onstage to begin our third week of rehearsals for _Don Juan Triumphant._ Madame Bennett arrived for she was choreographing the scene in which we were practicing. It was during the first act, after Don Juan sees Aminta for the first time outside her home, he dreams of her and in his dream, she dances for him beckoning. Just as he reaches her, he wakes alone. Maddie danced it masterfully, the music finally bringing my soul back to life. In that instant I was Don Juan and she was Aminta and nothing else existed but my desire for her.  
"Now Charles, I want you to wrap your arms around her shoulder and her waist. And as you carry her to the bed, she will escape and you will be left alone to wake." Aunt Meg said and as we did this movement, it seemed to bring the whole purpose of the story together.

Don Juan is a master of seduction, and he finally sees his ultimate challenge, young Aminta. The youngest of three girls, pure as the driven snow. After the seduction, however, Don Juan wants no other woman and realizes he loves her and they secretly marry. Aminta's father, seeing his youngest falling for this man, attempts to keep them apart, finally going so far as to challenge Don Juan to a duel. Don Juan does not want to accept, but the man is insistent and he ends up killing the girl's father. She goes through horrible grief and anger, but realizes that she cannot live without him. Don Juan is taken into prison and sentenced to execution, but Aminta comes against the wishes of her sisters and admits she loves Don Juan. They kiss, and Don Juan is executed, but Aminta sings that he and their love will live on, for she will have his child within the year and the curtain falls as he steps up to be hung.

We went back to the house after, emotionally drained. Still, I could not face the man I had called "Dad" for so long. Maddie sat with me until I fell asleep. I felt her leave just after dark, but I wasn't asleep, so I got up and followed her. She'd gone to the small bistro that we'd first spoken at. My heart sank and my mouth dropped when I realized she was sitting with my best friend Gabe. I snuck into the bistro in the shadows and tried to get near to wear they were. I could hear them talking. He was holding her hand. Bastard...poor Camille. Hurt beat within my chest as I heard her confess to him.  
"I just...don't know what to do...how to bring it up and I can't talk to Charles about it...he has his own problems right now." She said, looking down at her hands.  
"Have you told him yet?" She sighed.  
"I don't know...I'm not sure I can ever feel that way for him." I needed to hear no more. I walked back out of the bistro stealthily. I went straight to the opera house and slept in the dressing room for the rest of the night.

The next morning I went to rehearsal, anger still burning beneath my eyes. The deceptive little brat. She'd led me on for almost three months now. I noticed Dad was there too. She waited onstage for me, brightening when she saw me. I glared at her.  
"Charles...where were you? We were so worried..." She stopped when she saw the expression on my face. "What is it?" She asked, trying to touch my face. I grabbed her hand and pushed her away.  
"Don't touch me...I was in the bistro last night...I heard everything." She paled.  
"Oh God..." She said looking down for a moment. "Then you know..." She said, her hand on her cheek.  
"You're damn right...how could you lie to me?" I asked and she looked confused.  
"Lie?" She asked, making me even more furious.  
"Yes lie...everyone lies to me..." I said, looking at Dad, whose face fell. He knew I knew.

"Charles, I hardly would say I lied to you..." She said her eyes, becoming dark.  
"What would you call it then _Madeleine?_" I asked, and she folded her arms protectively under her breasts.  
"Look I was going to tell you today..." She said, looking sick, and I looked down.  
"I wasn't good enough..." I said and she looked confused again.  
_"What?"_ She asked, becoming more angry and I looked at her, making my eyes cold.  
"It's because I am not truly a Chagny! Is that it?" I asked and looked at Dad, who had gone completely cold. Madame Giry held his arm tightly. "That's right Dad...I found your dirty little secret...Did you think I was an idiot? That I wouldn't find out?" I asked, knowing full well it wasn't his fault but Mother wasn't here to blame.  
"Charles, I..." He said but stopped when I shook my head.

Maddie reached for me again but I caught her wrists, shoving her.  
"We're done Madeleine...I'm done..." I said, turning away as she fell to the ground sobbing as Deirdre and Aunt Meg came to her side.  
"Charles!" She cried again but I began to walk away. Suddenly I heard angry footsteps behind me and she was on my back wrestling me to the ground.  
"You bastard! You don't even know the half of it and you're too damned stubborn to hear the truth." She said holding me down.

"All we are is a lie!" I said to her and she slapped me so hard, I thought I would see stars, but Aunt Meg had managed to pull her off of me with the help of Dad.  
"Charles..." He said offering me his hand to help me but I refused and got up, stalking away without a second glance.  
"Go ahead Charles! Run away from your problems like you always do!" She said, and I turned to give her one last look as the man who had been my father all my life held her gently, both of them watching me leave with tears running down their faces. I saw Dad set her down as she sprinted in the other direction.


	33. Chapter 33

MADDIE

I sobbed against the stained glass window of the dusty old chapel. What could I do? He said he'd heard everything, and still he'd left! How could he? Now I was alone in this. Completely and utterly alone. I brought my knees up to my chest and rested my forehead on them. Never had I felt so helpless. I heard footsteps and quickly stood to face away from whoever was coming in. I couldn't stop the shaking that sobbing was causing in my shoulders.  
"Maddie dear, thank God you're alright!" Raoul's gentle voice came from behind me. I turned to face him, still crying.  
"Raoul." I said and he nodded.  
"Look, we have to talk..." He said and I knew what was coming, so I sat in the alcove that I had been before.  
"You're right, we do..." I said, motioning for him to sit beside me, and wiped my face with the back of my hand.

He sat and took both of my hands.  
"As you know by now...Charles is not my son by blood..." He said and I nodded, starting to say something but he held his hand to my lips.  
"Please don't talk until I finish...just let me get it out..." He said and I sat back.  
"When Charles was born...he was delivered by Cesarean section...I was extremely worried since he was two months early...Christine and I had only been married eight months you see. However, the doctors assured me he was only a month early which would have been impossible. You see, my dear...when I came to find Christine here at this very opera house, she was troubled. I had known her in my childhood, but she was not the girl I'd known. Yet, I stupidly clung to the dream of what we had shared all those years before." He sighed, as I waited patiently for him to continue.

"I came to find, Christine was entangled in a web of deceit, passion and worst of all fear. There was a man, masquerading as an Angel of Music, teaching my Christine...he terrorized the opera house and still managed to convince Christine he was an Angel her father had sent her. You can imagine my reaction to this. I found out this man was hopelessly in love with her and I intended to free Christine of him in my naive twenty-one year old way of thinking. What I didn't realize was that she loved him too...the thing was...half of his face was deformed and he'd been condemned to a life of solitude because of it. His gifts completely made up for what his face lacked." I gasped, thinking of what they did with deformed people. You could be thrown into an asylum for being deformed!  
"Deformed?" I asked and he nodded. 

"Grotesquely so...all he ever wanted was love, but I was too young and stupid to see that he truly did love Christine. Until the night he tried to kill me. The night they first performed his opera. _Don Juan Triumphant._ She pulled his mask off in front of everyone, and I know now that she did it to save his life, knowing full well he would take her from that stage. What happened was, I had arranged for the police to be there and he would be shot if he dared to enter. That night, he killed the leading tenor, Ubaldo Piangi and took his place in the opera. So in revealing his horrors to the public, Christine had saved him. He took her down to his home where he made her promise to marry him." Again, I gasped. This was the same Erik? He went on.  
"Foolishly, I had wanted to play hero and save Christine...but she hadn't needed to be saved, yet I knew she was torn between the safety of our young love and the passion of her dangerous love. The Persian man, Nadir and our Madame Giry both led me down into the depths of his domain. Madame Giry left us about halfway, and we continued down together. We ended up in Erik's torture chamber. When he noticed we were in there, he let us out and before I could bring my hand to the level of my eyes, his lasso was around my neck, choking the life out of me. He gave Christine a choice. Marry him or I would die. I pleaded with her not to lie to him but she only looked at me with pity at that moment. She placed the ring Erik had given to her on her finger and kissed him full on the lips right in front of me. My heart was broken." He sighed raggedly and I, having forgotten my problems squeezed his hands supportively.

"Then, he let us go. She had freed herself by offering him her love...but she didn't want to go...she wailed and begged him until I finally had to carry her off as she cried over and over.  
'Angel! Angel!' He made me promise to take care of her and to bring her back the day before our wedding, with an invitation. With that he left the room with Nadir without so much as a goodbye. Christine sobbed all the way back across the lake. Sure enough the day before our wedding, she was intent on going back, much to my dismay. I ripped up the invitation she'd been ready to give him and told her if she went back it was over. I left then and she didn't follow. The next day I went down to retrieve her, horrified to find the underground home in ruin. He'd destroyed everything. I waited with the Persian for Christine to emerge from the room with Erik. She finally did, seemingly at peace. Four weeks later, we got married and a month after that we found out she was pregnant. We waited to get married because she said she wanted me to be sure I could forgive her. I didn't know what she meant at the time..."

I sucked in a breath. It was so tragic...no one could have won. He went on.  
"When he was born by the surgery, I knew I was not his father. The doctors confirmed it. Still, I couldn't bring myself to hate her or the baby. I was certain Christine was going to die after Charles was born, but she made it through and we were happy for a while. Six years later, we argued over whether Charles should be taught by tutors or sent to the special school for the artistically gifted...he was a gifted child. I insisted he be taught by our tutors, but Christine demanded he take the scholarships he'd been offered. I pleaded with her until she finally became so angry she said, 'It's really not your decision anyway...he's my son!' It hurt...I left that night for Paris...to think. It was there I saw a young girl running through the dark. I stopped her and asked her where she was going. She simply said she was running...she had to get away. That girl was your mother, Chloe. I rented a room at a nice hotel and offered her the shelter which she gladly accepted. When she smiled, my heart hurt because her smile was so similar to Christine's."

I stopped breathing as he went on, speaking about my mother. Her smile flashed in my mind.  
"As I got to know her over the course of that week, it was becoming steadily harder to imagine my life without her. She was so vibrant and lovely, but so fragile. I can still remember her smile. I confessed the night before I was to leave that I was having feelings of love for her and she became scared, but admitted she too had feelings for me. We slept together that night. She was gone when I woke up. I searched all day for her, but finally I decided to go back to Christine. I went back to London and when Christine opened the door to our house, I fell at her feet sobbing and she apologized over and over...saying that Charles would have tutors. To make it up to her, I had the very best tutors teach him and it turned out to be for the best since the school he had been accepted at went under in financial debt. We were quite happy but I never forgot Chloe, just as she could never let go of Erik."

I turned away from him.  
"She told me you didn't want me...you lied...she lied...how could you do this to me?" I asked, angrily.  
"Please try to understand Madeleine..." He begged and I pushed his hands away.  
"Understand what? Were you ever going to tell me that I wasn't an orphan? Raoul, when my mother died, I ran. I lived on the streets for a year and got a job at a small café run by Louis Dupont. He allowed me to stay there at night but for a price...me." I said, and Raoul's hand came to his mouth.

"No..." He said in disbelief. "God..._no._" He sobbed, but I remained stone cold. He took my hands again.  
"Oh Madeleine...I didn't know! I didn't know you were my daughter, and yet, there you sit with eyes the same shape as my own. The only difference is they are the same color as your mother's!" He was crying and I could no longer hold back my own tears.  
"When did you realize I was yours?" I asked and he smiled through his tears.  
"Christmas night...I went through the whole thing in my mind when I saw your locket and the drawing of Chloe...I realized your age...and it added up." I nodded.  
"My grandfather forced her to become a prostitute after I was born. He was evil...and I am glad he's dead...but my mother died of syphilis and as far as I am concerned he murdered her." Raoul nodded, still sobbing.  
"And you watched her die?" He whispered. I nodded, breaking down finally.

"Oh Maddie..." He said, taking my face in his hands. "I am so sorry...what an idiot I was...I've ruined your life and Charles's." I shook my head.  
"No. I might not have found Charles that way...I have no regrets...for you see, now I have secrets of my own." I said, frightened and he stared at me dumbfounded.  
"What do you mean?" He asked and I smiled, tragically.  
"Just as Christine carried Erik's child, I carry his grandchild..." I said and fell forward into Raoul's arms finally allowing myself to cry openly. He rocked with me, shocked I am sure, but he said something that sent a spark of hope into my heart as I clutched his sleeves.  
"Shh...I'm here...you're alright...I won't leave you ever again...I swear it..."


	34. Chapter 34

I'm not going to lie and say that this is perfectly accurate, because it obviously can't be since this phic is based off of the musical, the movie and the novels. I tried to incorporate a bit of them all so please forgive some confusion…anyhow…there are quotes from the Kay novel in this chapter too. I don't own it…my name isn't Susan Kay. Obviously. Thanks!  
Syd

CHARLES

Damn them…damn them all! I furiously threw a few items of clothing into a bag before turning to leave my room for good. As I turned to leave, I saw Gabe standing in the doorway.  
"Get out." I said and he narrowed his eyes at me.  
"God, you're an imbecile." He said, making the rage rise. I had never felt like this before, like I was watching myself fall into this pit of destruction and I couldn't do a thing about it.  
"First you betray me, then you dare to tell me _I'm_ an imbecile?" I challenged him. "How could you do that to Millie?" He became angry, pointing his finger at me.  
"Don't ever say that I would hurt Camille, because I love her. Madeleine wasn't having an affair with me God damn you!" I became confused now.

"She said she didn't know if she could ever feel that way about me! I _heard_ her Gabe!" I said, knowing I sounded like a whining child. He shook his head sadly, looking at me with pity.  
"She wasn't talking about you, you idiot! She was talking about her father! She figured out who he is!" He practically screamed at me. I stopped dead, looking at him.  
"Renaud Champoux?" I asked and Gabe raised an eyebrow.  
"No…it's your father…it's Raoul…Raoul de Chagny." I dropped the bag and sank to the floor. Then that would make us…no! It wouldn't, for I wasn't Raoul's son. I buried my head in my hands as Gabe knelt beside me.  
"Look…she loves you…" He said and I looked up at him.  
"After the way I treated her…I can't…I don't deserve her. I'm just going to go." I said quietly, standing and walking out the door. He called after me.  
"Charles! You don't know the whole story! Don't go!" I couldn't stay…there was nothing for me here but lies and betrayal.

I mounted my horse and left my home for good, unsure of where I would go, but certain of where I needed to go. The cemetery. I had to talk to Mother. The wind was bitter cold, and stung my face but I didn't care. I flew through the gates of the Paris Cemetery, my hair wild and curly from neglecting to cut it for so long. I dismounted the horse and led him to Mother's grave which was quite near my grandfather's. Instantly, my heart leapt into my throat as it always did when I saw her gravestone. As angry as I was with her, I couldn't stay mad because I had loved her so much and still did. I knelt before it, allowing myself to cry.  
"Why? Why would you do this to me? To him?" I asked her, knowing I wasn't going to get an answer.  
"The heart wants what it wants dear boy…" I turned to see the Middle Eastern man from the opera standing there. I stood, unsure of what to say or do. The man had sympathy and kindness in his dark eyes.

"Monsieur Khan…" I said and he nodded, smiling slightly.  
"Come on son…let's get you some food, you look ghastly." I nodded, turning to look one last time at Mother's grave before turning to leave with the man. We rode back into town and arrived at his hotel, where we tied up our horses and went inside. Monsieur Khan stopped at the front desk.  
"Mademoiselle, if you could have dinner sent up to my room…my friend and I have much to discuss." He led me up to his room, which was just a normal nice hotel room, more upper class than anything and he motioned for me to sit at the table.  
"I would have suggested a restaurant, but in the condition you're in, I can see you need to be away from people right now. Tell me my boy…what happened?"

I sighed.  
"Everything I am is a lie…" I said, unsure of why I was so comfortable talking to this foreign man. He nodded.  
"Go on…" He urged and I hesitated but continued.  
"I recently discovered that my father, is really not my father. If that makes any sense at all. My mother had an affair of sorts I suppose and I was the result. A man who my father spoke nothing but kind words about." Monsieur Khan nodded.  
"Erik." He said softly.  
"You knew him?" I asked and he sighed.  
"Indeed dear child I did…you see I was the chief of police in Mazenderan, or the daroga as I was called. I never wanted a job as such. I was summoned by the shah and sent to Russia to find the greatest magician who ever lived."

He smiled slightly.  
"I admit, I was a bit jarred when I found him, for you see, he was dressed in all black except for the white mask, which covered half of his face. He told me to come back the next night and I was shocked at the beauty of his voice. I brought him back to Persia and on the way learned he had horrid mood swings, yet when he told stories…it was amazing. He could capture any audience. I saw him kill for the first time on that journey back. He saved my life that night. I took him to meet my son who was extremely ill. Reza. Erik dazzled my son bringing him out of the darkness of disease for a short while. When the shah demanded Erik's presence at court, Reza was devastated and threw a fit, but with one word, he calmed the child down and promised that if he was a good boy, he would return. When he saw the poverty of Tehran, he was appalled and straight away he wanted to rebuild the city."

Monsieur Khan stopped to laugh as I sat quietly. There was a knock at the door as he called to allow them in. They set up our dinner on the table and left us to eat in peace. "The day we arrived in court, he was up to his usual mischief. When he saw the swans, he was enthralled. Erik, you see, had a fascination with the creatures. I remember exactly what he said. 'Swans are ugly when they hatch, and yet they grow to be the most beautiful and majestic of birds…that is one of life's pretty miracles, is it not? Like the snake which sheds its skin and caterpillar which turns into a butterfly. _Metamorphosis…_Yes…that is the true magic in this world…but it's a secret that has never been revealed…not even to the tenth graduate of the College of Sorcery. Would you like to be turned into a swan daroga?'"

I only looked at my food, completely lost.  
"Daroga…sir…I don't understand." I said, unsure of what to say. He smiled sadly.  
"Erik, my friend, was horribly deformed. The right side of his face was completely mangled." I am sure my eyes had widened because the man became solemn. He continued,  
"Once, the khanum ordered him to remove his mask, or she would…well, let's just say the intended result wasn't pleasant…" He said, laughing. "Erik, being the smart ass he was, snapped back and finally threw the mask at her feet. That is when the khanum gave him the diamond ring he always wore on his little finger." The daroga became silent for a moment.

"My son's conditioned had worsened and he was confined to a wheeled chair. His sight was almost gone. Erik had stolen the king's cat to show Reza. I became angry with him, but he never got caught. Never. Reza began to suffer and Erik was as unable to watch him suffer as was I. He asked me to give him two months, and sure enough over those two months Reza deteriorated right before me. I couldn't do it anymore. Erik made a potion to put him to sleep…forever. I couldn't do it, so he did it for me and laid my son in my arms when he had died."

He had to stop for a moment and catch his breath. I looked at him, hurting for him. He looked up at me and smiled, motioning to my uneaten dinner.  
"Eat Charles…" He said and I took a bite of the cooked greens. He nodded, ready to go on.  
"The day finally came when they sent a slave girl to Erik's chambers for him to use her as he wished. He couldn't…he sent her away…I knew it would end horribly, but they killed her. Soon, I realized he was horribly addicted to opium, hoping to die. They turned on him and I had to get him out. I couldn't watch them destroy him. We said our goodbyes and I didn't see him again until 1875. I learned he had become a ghost of some sorts. The opera ghost! He agreed to meet me once a week on the banks of the lake…to keep track of his sanity…or lack thereof." He chuckled.

"Six years passed before your mother and Erik communicated. Madame Giry had brought her to the opera after her father died when she was sixteen. She was so vulnerable…and innocent. As you can probably recall, her father used to tell her about the Angel of Music. Erik heard her calling out for him in the chapel. The Angel…that is. For months, he deceived her shamelessly, using guilt to control her with only his voice because he was in love with her, and Allah knows Erik should have never fallen in love. It was too dangerous. One night, he brought her through the mirror and down into his lair. After a production of _Hannibal._ That was when the madness ensued. That same night, the Vicomte de Chagny had seen her sing, and remembered her from their childhood. He had, of course, come to greet her and bring flowers to her. After he left, Erik had scolded her for allowing distractions in her life and she begged his forgiveness. That is when he revealed himself to her, acting purely on adrenaline and jealousy."

I sighed, running a hand through my overgrown hair.  
"She never spoke of him…" I said quietly and the daroga smiled.  
"No, she wouldn't have, would she? It would have only hurt more…"  
"With the viscount, she found the safe young love that all girls dream of, but in Erik, she found something terrifying yet she was unable to leave. Like a moth to a flame. She did love him, she proved that fact the night of _Don Juan Triumphant._ Raoul, in an effort to save her from Erik, had ordered the police to be there and shoot if he appeared. I knew these efforts would be ridiculous as did Madame Giry, but what else could we do? We let the boy think he had the upper hand. Still, when Erik appeared on that stage, I actually feared for him. Christine knew too, and revealed him to the audience. He reacted just as I'd suspected and the chandelier fell that night as he took Christine. In doing this she saved his life. I led Raoul into Erik's home and soon the boy had a noose around his neck and Christine had an ultimatum. Choose Raoul and he dies. Of course, she became angry, but she slid Erik's ring on her finger and kissed him. He made her leave, much to her dismay. A month after that night, she returned when Erik was very ill. She stayed in that room with him and didn't emerge until Raoul came for her. Eight months later, you were born and Erik had been assumed dead."

My eyes hurt, burned actually. This had to be some insane dream. I tried to breathe as he offered me water, which I took and choked down.  
"Do you think, daroga, that Erik is dead?" I asked, and he stared at me with his black eyes for a few moments.  
"He disappeared that night, as did your parents. In his condition, I wasn't sure he'd survive the night, but then I realized this was Erik…Erik who had survived far worse things, yet this broken heart seemed to age him drastically. The next morning, I went into the room to check on him and he was gone, his bed neatly made, clothes left in the closets." My hands began to tremble as I tried to savor the cool water, but I couldn't hold the glass any longer. I took another breath.  
"I ask you again daroga…do you think that my father is dead?" He thought for a moment before looking straight into my eyes.  
"Not for one second."


	35. Chapter 35

MADDIE

_March 7, 1906_

_I have always been able to find the strength to go on. Even in my darkest hour, running through the cold Paris night, I had the will to survive. Tonight, I have lost all strength as I lay in my bed, cold, lonely and afraid. I know I will be cared for that is not the issue, for Raoul is a good man above all else. Society does not worry me, I have never cared for it. What frightens me, is that the father of my unborn son or daughter has lost his mind and is nowhere to be found. Possibilities keep running through my head and I am helpless. Oh Christine, is this how you felt when you learned you would bear the child of your Angel? What insanity lies ahead? I will perform in this Don Juan Triumphant, Christine. For you…for the Angel and for the son you created out of your love. I don't know if I will ever return to the opera after it is over…_

Charles had been missing for just over two weeks now. I had no one to turn to. Raoul was beside himself with guilt, Madame Giry was not feeling well and Deirdre was engulfed in her upcoming wedding to Daniel Reynolds along with her mother. I promised Didi I would, of course, be in her wedding at her constant begging. It was to be me and Daniel's three sisters. Raoul's sister, Alana, my aunt, had been very generous in trying to include me in the family. I was grateful that his family was so kind. Camille spent the most time with me, she became my crutch along with Gabe. They were truly a perfect match, though twelve years apart in age, they understood each other, which was something I hadn't allowed myself to do with Charles. I blamed myself for most of the problems we'd had. He'd been so willing to offer me everything I could hope for, and time and again I had run from him.

One night, after they'd left, I walked out onto the balcony of my bedroom, letting the cool air into my room. I looked up into the dark crystal clear sky and strained to see Heaven. I wondered where it could be hiding…I leaned against the railing, feeling the smooth, cold stone as I stared up at the scattered diamonds in the sky, realizing I was looking at Heaven. I folded my hands under my chin and kept looking at the sky.

"Angel…if there are angels of music and other things," I began, unsure of what I should say, "Please help me to get through this…I've never asked for anything before, but please just let him be safe…please…" I said, and I thought I saw some movement below me, but I realized it was just my imagination as my bedroom door opened and Raoul walked in.

"Raoul…" I said as he came to shut the doors to the balcony.

"Maddie, it is cold outside…you can't get sick…it could be bad, you know…" He said, gesturing to the baby. I still scarcely believed I was with child. I didn't feel different. I hadn't experienced the sickness that many women complained of and I certainly wasn't showing. I was only just over two months along. The only reason I had gone to the doctor was because I had missed my monthly date and was beginning to get worried. I'd never expected this out of a night I couldn't even remember and yet, it had started to come back to me piece by piece. After we'd kissed at midnight, we'd continued to drink champagne, and dance through the night. At one point Charles had beckoned for me to follow him and we hailed a cab back to the house. It had been hours before anyone else had come home, so it wasn't as if we were careful in our drunkenness.

"Just trust me…" He'd said and as if I was watching myself behave like a silly tart I'd giggled and said,

"I do…" And it had happened.

Maybe if I just pretended like it wasn't real, it wouldn't be. At least while I got through this opera. A young man named Alexis had been brought in to take Charles's place as Don Juan. He was well mannered, talented enough and I had absolutely no chemistry with him. My heart just wasn't it anymore.

"Maybe I should step back…" I mused at dinner one night after rehearsal. Raoul sighed.

"Nonsense Madeleine…you've worked so hard for this…" He said, taking my hand.

"I just don't want to let everyone down…I feel like I am…" I said, staring into my food.

"You're not…and you'll do great. I promise…" He said, a smile in his eyes. It was nice to see him smile as he rarely did anymore.

"You should smile more, Raoul…" I said, trying to lighten the mood and he chuckled.

"Thank you Madeleine…I'll try for you." He said, getting up and kissing my cheek before retiring to his study.

I finished eating before I went upstairs to get ready for bed. As I changed, I inspected myself in the mirror for any changes at all. Obviously not. The only thing about me that had changed was I was tired and that was due to stress and lack of sleep. My appetite was the same as it had always been. I put on my nightgown and a robe and padded out of my room, to peek into Charles's room as I always did before I went to bed. The bed was made, everything was perfectly in place. It was almost like he'd died. Like he'd never lived here. God, it hurt to look at that room. I missed his mess. I walked to his desk and sat down, opening the drawer, searching for some remnants of him. I found a stack of papers stuffed into one of the bottom drawers. There were architectural designs, and random still life drawings. There were sketches of people walking down the street.

I stopped when I came to the next sketch. It was me. I knew it wasn't his mother, because he'd titled it on the bottom right corner along with his signature. _Madeleine. _I began to cry again.

"Oh Charles…" I whispered, "I am so sorry…I ruined everything." I began to put the sketches back, when I noticed an overstuffed envelope. I pulled it out and emptied its contents onto the desk. There were pictures upon pictures of Charles and his mother. One such caught my eye and pulled at my heart. He couldn't have been more than two or three years old and she was holding him with his head resting just under her chin. He was shyly clinging to her, smiling at the camera and she was looking down at him with such adoration, one might have thought she was looking on a piece of Heaven.

His hair was dark as it still was and wildly curly, his eyes bright. There was one with them seated side by side at the piano, and another with them sleeping on a sofa. It was clear to me then that Christine had cherished her son. The last photo was different. It was still a quite young Charles, but this time Raoul was in the picture instead of Christine. Charles was looking up at Raoul and trying to imitate the way he stood as Raoul laughed. I didn't even have one photo of my own mother except for the cracked old one in my locket and the drawing Charles had given me. I set everything carefully back where I had found it and nearly jumped out of my skin when I felt something rub against my ankle. I looked down to see Aida staring up at me like a lost kitten with her big blue eyes. I bent to pick her up and stroke just behind her ears.

"It's just us now kitten…" I said, kissing her little forehead.

She sensed my unhappiness and rubbed her cheek against mine. Poor baby had lost her master and had almost been forgotten in the shuffle of everything. Sure, she had been fed and cared for in that way, but the love Charles used to lavish on her was gone and she was left to wander aimlessly as I was. Oh, I wished we could speak to each other in that moment, insane as it sounds. I took her to Charles's bed and lay in the middle of it with her, turning my head into the pillow and trying to retrieve the scent of his cologne, which I did, and it only made me cry again. How could I go on as Aminta without Charles as my Don Juan? We had started this together and now, he wasn't even here to finish it.

The rest of that night is a blur to me for just moments after I had settled on top of Charles's comforter, Raoul was calling out to me desperately from the hallway.

"Madeleine! Maddie!" He cried as I got up quickly from the bed, running out of the room, Aida close at my heels.

"What is it Raoul?" I asked when I found him just outside my bedroom. He looked white as a ghost.

"It's Madame Giry…she's taken a turn for the worse…" He said brokenly as I stood, not knowing what to do. He came to touch my shoulder. "Get dressed…we have to go over there." I nodded numbly, rushing to pull on a dress and pull my hair back.

We arrived at her flat fifteen minutes later, Deirdre answered the door in tears.

"Maddie!" She cried, throwing her arms around me. I held her, rocking her back and forth for a few minutes. I nodded to Daniel who was standing with Deirdre's father and brother. Madame Bennett approached us, smiling at Raoul who stood behind me.

"Do you want to see her?" She asked and I looked up at Raoul who nodded, guiding me by the shoulders past the doctor. Nothing could have prepared me for the sight when I walked into her room. She was chalk white, even her lips. Her hands were limp and twisted at her sides and her eyes were barely open, yet she managed a small smile when I walked in. I took one of her hands.

"Madame Giry…how long have you been sick?" I whispered on the verge of tears. She sighed with great effort.

"For about four or five months…" She breathed and I began to choke, sobbing. She touched my cheek weakly. "I didn't want you all to fuss over me…there's nothing they could do…it started as just a cold, then developed into a more severe cold which eventually became Pneumonia. The same thing that killed my husband." She said, gasping for breath. I shook my head over and over again, clinging to her hand. She smiled slightly.

"Please Madeleine…find Charles…bring him home…his child needs him…" She gasped out and I began to cry harder.

"I want to find him, I do! Please Madame Giry you can't die! I'll be alone!" I cried, hating my selfishness, but still her smile remained.

"No you won't sweet heart…you have your father…and you'll find Charles…" She said, smiling up at Raoul. "Don't run from love Madeleine…don't do what Christine did…" She began to cough violently and Raoul quickly ushered me from the room, shielding my face as her body was wracked by coughing.

I held onto his jacket.

"She can't die Raoul…she can't…" I whispered over and over again. He only stood with me and let me lean on him as any father would let their daughter. Deirdre sat with Daniel in the corner, he held her on his lap like a little girl, whispering words of comfort. William Bennett stood solemnly behind his wife and son, Alexander. I'd never seen Madame Bennett look so young and helpless. Her blonde hair was frazzled and hardly tied back, her blue eyes red rimmed with tears. The great Madame Giry was soon going to be laid to rest and the world wasn't ready to lose her. Raoul's eyes were also wet with tears, his light brown hair disheveled, dark circles beneath his usually bright eyes. He sat me down beside him on the small love seat as we all waited in horrible heavy silence. An hour went by with nothing until finally the bedroom door opened and the doctor emerged. We all looked toward him with leaden hearts as he confirmed our worst fear.

"I'm sorry…she's gone." Everything went black.


	36. Chapter 36

CHARLES

"Charles." I was brought out of my thoughts as I sat at the window in my hotel room by the daroga's voice. Almost three weeks had passed since I had left Dad's house.  
"Monsieur Khan!" I said, brightening. He remained solemn. "Oh God, Nadir, what is it?" I asked and he shook his head.  
"It's Madame Giry. She's passed away…I am sorry." He said, bowing his head slightly before returning to his own room. I stood staring at the door he'd just walked through before running after him.  
"How?" I cried breathlessly down the hall, "How?" I asked again and he turned back toward me.  
"Pneumonia. The funeral is tomorrow morning at the church." I sighed, leaning against the hotel wall for support.  
"Are you going to go?" I asked him and he nodded in his subtle way.  
"I suggest you do the same Charles." He said before disappearing around the corner.

Early the next morning, I shaved and cleaned up at bit before putting on one of my better black suits. I pulled the black cloak that I had taken from that house five levels beneath the opera around me since I had no other and it was still quite chilly. It was not velvet, but cashmere. I stared at my reflection. I wonder if he had ever looked on himself like this in the mirror. I put a hand over the right side of my face to try and catch a glimpse of the way he must have looked. I imagined I had to look somewhat like him since the only thing I had inherited from Mother was the curling of her hair. I had to look like someone, didn't I? Over the past few weeks, I had slowly come to terms with my identity. It still stung, but I didn't feel the need to heave whenever I thought of it.

My thoughts moved on to Madeleine, who had found one of the missing links in her own identity, ironically, the man I called father all my life. Madeleine, whose hazel eyes reflected all of the horrors of the world with a single blink. How much I had been sheltered from and how much she had suffered. It wasn't fair. I hadn't been fair to her and I knew it.  
"Charles, you don't know the whole story!" She'd cried as I'd walked heartlessly away from her. I didn't deserve her love. No one did...oh God, how could I cope if I came back to find her in the arms of someone else? I would have to kill myself. Was this how he had felt about Mother? Nadir entered my room.  
"Dear boy...what are you doing? We must go!" He said and I nodded, turning to him. His eyes widened but he nodded.  
"You do the cloak justice." He grinned. I nodded and followed him, combing my unruly hair back with my hand.  
"I don't know about that..." I said as I shut the door behind me.

We slid silently into the back shadows of the church, I couldn't let them see me, but I could see the back of Dad's head. Seated beside him was Madeleine. I could see she was sobbing, and I felt tortured and helpless because I couldn't bring myself to go and touch her as I longed to. Would she even accept my apologies? I wouldn't if I were her. Her brown curls gleamed in the sunlight streaming through the stained glass windows. At the altar sat the casket, which to my horror, was open. Granny Giry...A sob wretched through my body involuntarily as I felt the daroga's hand pat my back. Madeleine's head began to turn but she stopped when Aunt Meg leaned over to whisper into her ear. I saw Maddie shake her head repeatedly, but finally nod. She slowly stood in her simple black dress and walked to the head of the church.  
"I um...I'm not very good at this..." She said, looking at Dad who nodded. She gave the pianist, a nun, a nod. Ave Maria began to fill the room gloriously and Maddie began to sing, or at least attempted to. Her face was shining with tears, but her voice was magnificent. So wrought with emotion.

_Ave Maria  
Gratia plena  
Maria, gratia plena  
Maria, gratia plena  
Ave, ave dominus  
Dominus tecum  
Benedicta tu in mulieribus  
Et benedictus  
Et benedictus fructus ventris  
Ventris tuae, Jesus.  
Ave Maria  
Ave Maria  
Mater Dei  
Ora pro nobis peccatoribus  
Ora pro nobis  
Ora, ora pro nobis peccatoribus  
Nunc et in hora mortis  
Et in hora mortis nostrae  
Et in hora mortis nostrae  
Et in hora mortis nostrae  
Ave Maria_

She finished as Deirdre joined her side, pulling her into a long embrace before turning back to everyone.  
"If Granny could see us all now, she'd tap her cane on the ground and berate us all for being so weak...That was her, all serious always. Yet, when she loved, she loved with her whole heart and soul and fought for those she cared about. She was everyone's guardian Angel, out to save the world one by one..." Deirdre laughed. "Now she really is our guardian Angel, so it shouldn't really hurt so much...but it does." She stopped and Maddie picked up for her, holding her around the shoulders and trying to stay strong.  
"I never believed in fate or anything like that...but Madame Giry showed me that I was wrong. Horribly so. She saved me...took me in...she made me believe that we are meant to meet the people we do."

Madeleine stopped, looking at everyone as if testing them. God, she looked so Heavenly upon that altar with the sun creating a golden halo around her brown curls.  
"She always said that people come into our lives for a reason, and that we are meant to learn something from each and every person. I know now she was right. She was always right..." She finished and walked with Deirdre to the side. As they were walking back, she stopped dead, staring right at me even though I knew she couldn't see us. She shook her head as if berating herself for acting foolish. Something was different in the way she carried herself. She was more careful, more delicate it seemed. I took one last look at her and walked out of the church quietly.

As we walked back to the hotel, Nadir sighed.  
"Charles, I think I may have found a clue to where Erik is...if he is indeed alive as I believe him to be." I stopped, turning to look at him.  
"Where then?" I asked, unsure if I was ready to know the truth. He looked at me, his black eyes serious.  
"Before Madame Giry died, she said she had once run into a Mademoiselle Marie Perrault, a friend of Erik's mother's. Apparently, he sent her letters frequently after leaving the opera from all over and she'd kept Madame Giry up to date. It seems, however, that he had returned to Persia after some time and actually was present when the last shah signed the Constitution in December, five days before his death, since my native land is now going through a Revolution, but that is not the matter here."

I sighed,  
"Is Mademoiselle Perrault still living?" I asked, and he nodded.  
"She is still quite alert...perhaps we shall write to her." He said and I shrugged, my heart thumping.  
"He might not even care..." I said aloud and Nadir spun on me as if I were crazy.  
"Not Erik...all he ever talked about was love...love and beauty were his weaknesses, for they were the things he always said he couldn't have. You were a product of the only experience he'd ever had with love or beauty for that matter." I looked around the nearly empty streets.  
"Do you know where this Miss Perrault lives?" I asked and he nodded.  
"Just outside Rouen. In a village called Boscherville." I suddenly was excited.  
"I've been through there!"

We arrived a while later there, and found her home. She answered the door herself, her eyes wide when she saw me.  
"Charles..." She whispered and I frowned.  
"I'm sorry Madame, but how is it you knew my name?" I asked and she shook her head.  
"It can't be, I am losing my mind..." She muttered but I remembered the portraits in the private drawer.  
"Charles Destler, you mean..." I said, realizing. She nodded. I took her hand.  
"I am Charles de Chagny...at least...I was." I said, and she looked pale but pulled both the daroga and I into her home.  
"You're Christine's son, aren't you?" She asked and Nadir nodded beside me, accepting her quick offering of tea. I nodded, not sure of what to say.  
"He isn't here, if that's why you came..." She said, staring at the daroga, who shook his head.

"Actually dear woman, we were wondering if you had any idea where he was." She looked out the window. "Not exactly...you see his letters never had a return address. I know at one point he had traveled through Russia and Italy but he'd ended up in Persia the last few years again after beginning a successful architectural firm in Italy." I gasped.  
"C & E Associates?" I asked and she nodded. I laughed, suddenly at the pure irony of it all. "I'd been offered a position there just last summer!" She looked at me with sadness in her eyes.  
"You are his son aren't you?" She asked and I nodded.  
"I only just found out, so you can imagine my shock." She looked thoughtful.  
"Goodness, if his mother, Madeleine ever had set eyes on you...she would have dropped dead."

I stood then, at the sound of the name and turned to Nadir. _Don Juan Triumphant_ opened this weekend. He nodded that he knew what was on my mind.  
"Madame, if you would be so kind as to reach me at the Bordeaux Hotel in Paris if you hear anything at all...I would greatly appreciate it." He said, rising himself. She nodded, looking at me still.  
"Oddly enough, I haven't heard from him in some time now...almost three months, but if I do I promise, I will let you know." I bowed my head to her.  
"Thank you Mademoiselle Perrault. Stay well." I said as Nadir led me back out into the light as I turned my focus to the journey that lie ahead.


	37. Chapter 37

MADDIE

_March 19, 1907 Opening night of Don Juan Triumphant. _

I am only an hour away from the overture to begin. It's been a long month, but I am glad it is finally here and will soon be over. I've slowly sunk into a depression these past weeks. If not for Raoul, I would probably have wasted away. He keeps me sane, makes me eat. I am forever grateful for his kindness and acceptance toward me. I know this whole business with Charles is eating at him. It's aged him a bit. He always manages to smile for me, but I know he's torn to bits inside. He does love Charles so. That makes two of us...I never even got to tell him I loved him.

"Oh Maddie, there you are!" Deirdre said, coming into the chapel where I sat in the window.  
"Yes, here I am..." I said softly as she sat across from me. "How are you holding up?" I asked her and she shrugged.  
"I could be better...but I came to see how you are..." She said, holding my hand. I looked up at her unable to hide the tears rimming my eyes.  
"It just hurts, you know? She was like a Mother to me...she saved my life and now she's gone. How silly of me to think she would always be there..." I said, speaking about Madame Giry. Deirdre nodded, biting her own trembling lip.  
"Maddie, I know...she was my Grandmother, but she was the greatest woman I ever knew. And she loved you...she loved all of us..." She stopped to look at me a moment.

"How does the costume feel?" She asked and I shrugged.  
"It's fine...really Didi, I don't feel any different than I ever did. It still hasn't even really sunk in." She nodded.  
"I can't imagine...being pregnant that is...Daniel would faint!" She laughed and I raised an eyebrow at her.  
"You haven't...I mean, you're still a..." She laughed.  
"Yes of course...oh, I won't lie and say we sit properly side by side and barely hold hands because I will admit things have become heated a time or two...but he always stops like the gentleman he is." I nodded.  
"Good..." I said and she leaned over to hug me.  
"You're going to blow everyone away tonight Maddie..." She said and smiled before she left.

I looked down at my hands before sighing and getting up as Raoul walked in.  
"There you are dear! Alana and Garrett were looking for you to wish you luck!" He stopped when he noticed I had the costume on.  
"Let me guess, I look like her..." I laughed and he shrugged.  
"It's startling...but you look enough like yourself to be different. Still, at first glance it is jarring. Sorry..." I laughed again.  
"It's alright...I suppose it's only natural." I said and he nodded, putting an arm around my shoulders and guiding me out to see my aunt and uncle.

"Madeleine!" Alana said, holding her arms out. I smiled and moved to give her a quick affectionate hug. She was a bit shorter than I so I had to lean a little. She stood back and looked at me. "How have you been feeling?" She asked and I knew she was referring to being with child.  
"Really...I don't feel any different..." I said and she laughed.  
"You're lucky then...I was deathly ill with all four of my children for the first four months." I smiled.  
"That's reassuring." I muttered and moved to hug Garrett too.  
"Take care tonight kid, and break a leg!" I grinned, feeling great to smile.  
"I'll try." I said as we all waved goodbye and they went to find their seats. Raoul kissed my cheek.  
"Take care..." He said, seriously and I nodded.  
"I promise...Dad." I tested him and he laughed out loud. I smiled in relief.

I sighed as the curtain went up and we began the opera. I watched from the wings until it was my turn to go on for the scene when Don Juan first lays eyes on Aminta near her home. Alexis was playing the part with grace, although he was a bit soft for the part, but he was remarkable for being just an understudy. My hair was all hidden within a large white bonnet that went with my peasant outfit and as my turn to sing came and Don Juan hid to watch me, I pulled it off, letting the curls spill out. I heard, as I'd expected a bit of a reaction from people in the audience who remembered Christine. As he revealed himself I jumped back, pretending to be alarmed as he offered me a rose, which I took and made to walk away but he held me in place and Don Juan stared into Aminta's face. He introduced himself as Passarino, a servant to Don Juan, and Aminta became more comfortable with him as he walked her through town. She agreed to meet him for dinner at his master's home.

I left the stage as he revealed his plan to seduce Aminta to the audience and made to change my costume as he prepared for Aminta's arrival. Don Juan informed his servant of his plans and put on a black mask, so I would not realize. Of course Aminta was much more naive than I, and if it was me in her situation, I wouldn't have fallen for it. Not for one second. Still, I walked onto the stage in my costume, a red rose tucked into my curls, thanks to Madame Bennett's help. She and Deirdre watched from the wings. 

"No thoughts within her head but thoughts of joy...no dreams within her heart but dreams of love..."

"Master?" Passarino's voice came. _  
"Passarino, go away for the trap is set and waits for it's prey..." _I looked up. That wasn't Alexis's voice.

I looked to the side confused and saw him standing there with his arms folded in his underwear. I would have laughed if I wasn't so frightened.  
"What in the hell?" I said aloud, clapping my hand over my mouth as I did. That voice, if I didn't know better, I would say it was...I turned to see what was going on and sure enough, there stood Charles in full Don Juan costume.  
_  
"You have come here in pursuit of your deepest urge...in pursuit of that wish, which till now has been silent...silent...I have brought you that our passions may fuse and merge. In your mind you've already succumbed to me, dropped all defenses completely succumbed to me...now you are here with me, no second thoughts, you've decided...decided..."  
_  
_God damn him..._I stood, breaking character.  
"You have a lot of damned nerve..." I hissed at him and he pleaded with his eyes.  
"Just go along with it Madeleine..." He said, and I am sure my eyes were throwing daggers.  
"You're a selfish jerk!" I whispered and began to walk away from him but he grabbed my arm.  
"Maddie..." He said, I knew he was trying to beg for my forgiveness but the hurt I felt was hindering my ability to see reason.  
"Charles...I am so far from forgiving you, it isn't even funny." 

"Past the point of no return, no backward glances...the games we've played till now are at an end...past all thought of if or when, no use resisting...abandon thought and let the dream descend...what raging fire shall flood the soul, what rich desire unlocks its door, what sweet seduction lies before us?"

He had me in his hold, one arm around my waist, one around my shoulders, just as we'd practiced. I tried to remain cold, but it was so hard when all I wanted to do was to turn and sob into his chest. He caressed my cheek softly and I knew he wasn't acting, but I clung to the pain he'd put me through these past weeks. Through that black mask, I could see his green eyes begging me. 

"Past the point of no return...the final threshold...what warm unspoken secrets will we learn? Beyond the point of no return..."

I looked up at Raoul, who was sitting in Box Five with Alana, Garrett, Daniel, Camille and Gabe. He had his hand to his cheek in shock, but he gave me a supportive nod. I bit my lip, debating whether I should continue with this madness. I cleared my throat softly, pulling away from Charles. 

"You have brought me, to that moment where words run dry, to that moment when speech disappears into silence...silence...I have come here, hardly knowing the reason why...in my mind I've already imagined our bodies entwining defenseless and silent...and now I am here with you...no second thoughts, I've decided...decided..."

I saw Charles sigh in relief but I still glared at him as I sang. 

"Past the point of no return, no going back now...our passion play has now at last begun...past all thought of right or wrong, one final question...how long should we two wait before we're one? When will the blood begin to race, the sleeping bud burst into bloom, when will the flames at last consume us..."  
We began to climb the stairs on either side of the stage and much to my dismay, I found I was unable to look away from him. I was finding it harder to stay mad at him as we both began to sing as we met again. 

"Past the point of no return...the final threshold, the bridge is crossed so stand and watch it burn...we've passed the point of no return..."

I let him stand with his arms around me, embracing me from behind me. We sort of swayed back and forth. My eyes opened when he whispered my name.  
"Maddie..." I turned slightly to look up at him, I knew I was close to tears. He pleaded. "I'm so sorry...just hear me out, please..." I sighed shaking.  
"Fine." I said, focusing on the buttons of his coat. He lifted my chin to look up at him.  
"I love you Maddie...Madeleine...I always have." He said and as if those were magic words I fell against him.

"Y-you do?" I asked, needing to hear it again.  
"Yes, I do...a thousand times yes." I knew he was smiling as he cradled my head gently against his chest. I looked back up at him, crying my eyes out.  
"I love you too..." He leaned down and I pushed that damned black mask off his face before I kissed him, wrapping my arms tightly around his neck.  
"I have to tell you something..." I said against his lips and he laughed, but stopped when he noticed how serious I was.  
"Oh God...what is it Maddie?" He asked and I held the sleeves of his coat tightly as I looked back at Raoul and the audience who were whispering to each other wildly. I looked up into his green eyes, the mask still on his head just pushed back. I breathed deeply.  
"I um...I'm pregnant."


	38. Chapter 38

**COUNTERPOINTE:**

**CHARLES & MADELEINE**

**CHARLES**

"I'm sorry..._what?_" I said, staring down at Maddie, who was shaking horribly. I was wondering if I had even heard her right. She nodded, though.

"I'm having a baby..." When my expression was still blank she rolled her eyes and said, "You know...when a man and a woman love each other..." I laughed nervously.

"No...I heard you...I just can't believe it...it was only that once..." I said and she shrugged.

"Charles...it only takes one time..." I pulled her tightly to me again, just happy to hold her. I leaned down to look at her.

"Are you alright...do you feel alright?" I asked, worried. I didn't really know how women who were with child were supposed to feel. She laughed, crying at the same time.

"I'm fine...I thought I'd never see you again..." She said and I used my thumb to wipe the tears from under her eyes. The audience of course, thought this was all part of the show and was clapping madly.

"I'm an idiot...and I love you...and I am _never_ going to leave you again...enough of this madness...I'm ready to come home and go back to our lives with Dad and Therese and Aunt Meg and everyone." I said, and I was. I'd told the daroga that if he did indeed find the man my mother had loved so much that I would indeed like to meet him, but Madeleine was the most important thing. Two things in life should be held above all else, beauty...and of course, love. I kissed her again, missing the feel of her lips already when I noticed her eyes had gone wide.

"Dupont!" She cried, and I held her for a moment.

"Stay here...do you understand me?" She nodded and I kissed her forehead, looking up to Dad, who had already left the box with my aunt, uncle and cousins. I began to go down to that man who had hurt Maddie but I stopped remembering one of the reasons I had come back tonight and ran back to Madeleine.

"Charles? What..." I kissed her, to quiet her and pulled something out of my pocket. She gasped.

"What's that?" She asked and I smiled.

"I forgot to ask you to marry me!" I said and she took the ring in her trembling hand, placing it gently on her finger.

"Did you even have to ask?" She asked throwing her arms around me and kissing me before I ran back to the stairs, smiling at her one last time, but Dupont was gone. Dad and Gabe came up behind me and thrust a sword into my hand.

"Good to have you back son." He said and I smiled at him.

"Dad, I'm so..." He smiled, looking up at Madeleine.

"Forget it...who is that man?" He asked me referring to Dupont. I sighed.

"The man who abused Madeleine throughout her childhood." Dad nodded.

"Good, we're going to kill him."

Maddie's scream brought us out of our conversation as I saw Dupont trying to get to her. She backed up as far as she could. Gabe strained to see in the dim light. Dad gasped. I tried to see also and turned to Dad, totally confused.

"Dad, that's Dupont, but who the hell is _that?_"

**MADDIE**

_Oh My God..._I thought as I backed away from the man who had haunted my nightmares for the past six years.

"You thought I wouldn't figure it out, did you missy?" He asked and I shook my head.

"Listen you pig...what the hell do you want with me?" I asked and he smiled, revealing his yellow teeth.

"You still belong to me you ungrateful little bitch! You signed a contract!" He said and what he said next would ring through my ears over again. "Not to mention, you've grown into quite a nice little piece of ass!" Rage shot through me and my instincts came through as I scratched him across the face, leaving three red marks on his face. As he grabbed at his face, I spun to run away, running right into the chest of another man.

"Who are you?" I asked, not even looking up.

"A friend." Was the response.

I looked up to see he was wearing a mask that covered half of his face. I knew this man!

"Oh my God...it's you!" I said and he looked down at me with half a smile on his face.

"Christine?" Dupont began to come back toward us.

"I'm sorry, no...actually my name is Madeleine and he is going to kill me!" I said and the man looked around me.

"He's going to do no such thing...don't worry...can you trust me?" He asked, his voice so beautiful I wanted to fall into it. I nodded dumbly and he leaned close.

"Hold on to me and don't let go...are you afraid of heights?" He asked and I looked down.

"A bit." I said weakly and he said.

"Close your eyes..." I did as I was told as he pulled a rope, triggering a trap door through the stage, down, down, down...The last thing I heard was Charles's voice.

"_Madeleine!"_

**CHARLES**

Dupont was gone again. Maddie had disappeared through the floor with the man I couldn't see and all of a sudden all hell had broken loose as someone screamed,

"Fire!" Chaos ensued as people flocked to the doors. I looked at Gabe, then at Dad.

"Come on!" He said, motioning for us to follow him. He felt along the corridor, pressing each stone gently. "It's here somewhere..." He muttered when suddenly the wall opened a bit and we went in. We were inside the walls! I could hear Maddie crying softly.

"Maddie!" I called, "Can you hear me?"

"Yes!"

"Are you alright?" Dad asked and we heard her sob.

"The building...it's on fire...It's hard to breathe! Get out before the building collapses!" I became hysterical then, clawing at the wall trying to dig my way to her. "Dupont set it on fire!" She said, "Get out Charles!"

"Maddie!" I cried, as Dad pulled me away when we smelled smoke.

**MADDIE**

The man led me down into the underground home through a different corridor.

"I'll be right back..." He said walking into the bedroom as I stood on the shore of the lake. Suddenly I was pinned against the wall with a large hand over my mouth.

"Thought you'd escaped with your friend, you little tramp? Louis Dupont's foul breathe was everywhere.

"Oh my God...please...don't hurt me...you don't have to do this!" I sobbed, tears pouring down my face. "Please...I'm begging you...I'm pregnant!" I cried and he laughed.

"You think I care about you or your child? When I saw _Il Muto _I knew I'd found you. I'd just presumed you were dead...but then I found you and I wanted you back. Your Daddy sent the police to the café to arrest me, but I got away...and now you're going to pay for it!" He said, his eyes wide with rage.

"You're going to kill me, aren't you?" I said, looking toward the bedroom, horror filling me.

"Yes, I'm going to kill the little whore..." He said, grinning.

"You think so, do you?" A voice came from behind him, startling him as he let go of my neck. I fell to the floor, struggling for air and ran to the man who'd saved me. He held me against his side tightly. He smirked and removed the mask as Dupont recoiled in horror.

"Bloody Christ...it's a monster!" He said and I became angry.

"You're the monster, you piece of trash!" I said clenching my fists. The man leaned down to look at me and I got my first glimpse of his face. I won't lie and say I didn't gasp because I did. It was the most tragic face I had ever seen, but I didn't cringe and for that I am forever proud of myself.

"Stay here girl." He said and I nodded.

"Be careful!" I said holding his arm and he patted my hand wading into the water to where Dupont had back into.

"Madeleine, was it?" He said, looking back up at me. I nodded and he smiled. Surprisingly, even though he was horribly deformed, his smile had a beauty to it that I had to smile back. "Can you throw me that rope there?" He asked. I followed his point to the pile of rope near my feet. I picked it up quickly and heaved it down to him. "Good girl." Dupont snorted.

"What, is she your little whore too?" He asked and the man became extremely angry.

"You sick son of a bitch..." He whispered. Dupont took out a gun as I screamed.

"He's got a gun!" Before he could even reach for the trigger, I noticed the man had tied the rope into a noose and had flung it expertly over Dupont's neck, practically breaking it as he pulled it back to tighten it. My hands flew to my mouth. The gun fell down into the water and the man who had hurt me all those years fell with it, surely on his way to Hell.

The man walked back to me and inspected my face to make sure I wasn't hurt.

"You're pregnant?" He asked and I nodded. He sat me down a moment, checking me over for bruises or broken bones.

"You're him aren't you? You're Erik...the opera ghost and all that nonsense..." He smiled again.

"Nonsense, yes...it was nonsense. I can see little Giry's stories carried over time." I was confused.

"Little Giry?" I asked and he smiled.

"Meg?" I brightened.

"Madame Bennett!" He nodded. I sighed.

"You're the one who loved Charles's mother Christine..." He nodded, but darkened a bit.

"Correction I _love _her." He said and I bit my lip. He didn't know...

"Oh you poor man...I am so, so sorry..." I said and his face lost color.

"Oh no...don't tell me..." He said putting his head in his hands. I nodded, taking one of his hands.

"She died...nine years ago...cancer." I said and he buried his face in both of his hands.

"Oh I am such a fool...why did I let her leave again?" He asked no one and I didn't know what to say. "She has children you said?" I nodded.

"Well, she has a son...but that is all." He looked at me incredulously.

"You are not her daughter?" He asked and I shook my head.

"Not quite...you see Raoul de Chagny is my father." I said and rage came into his eyes.

"He promised me...He _promised _he would take care of her!" He said and panic came into my chest.

"It isn't what you think...you see Charles, her son, is not my brother..." Erik looked confused but some sort of recognition came into his green eyes, identical to Charles's.

"Oh I see..." He said, clasping his hands together in his lap. I patted his arm, sympathetic.

"She loved you too..." I said and he looked up at me in wonder.

"You are something Madeleine..." He said with a small smile. "Aren't you afraid...look at me." I laughed out loud.

"I am looking at you...you saved my life sir!"

Smoke began to fill the room everywhere and his head looked around. We'd forgotten the fire.

"Come on Madeleine...we have to get you out of here...you aren't feeling well and the smoke will kill us both before the building collapses." I nodded, taking his hand. "Come through here...I designed this building, I know every way out..." He said, putting his mask back on.

We got as far as the dressing room before I began to feel dizzy. Smoke was everywhere.

"I can't...breathe..." I stuttered, shaking violently. I felt myself begin to fall as everything became fuzzy. He caught me and carried me as the smoke engulfed us. I could hear him faintly.

"I've got you Madeleine...don't worry...I wouldn't let you die." He carried me through the mirror and stopped just in the dressing room.

"It's like I've gone back in time..." I didn't hear anything else after that.


	39. Chapter 39

CHARLES

Dad had Gabe and I both by the wrist and he was leading us through the smoke. We found an opening in the corridor and went through it, consequently ending up back in the chapel.

"Alright good, we can get out now…" Dad said and I stopped.

"No…I am not leaving this building without Maddie." I said, planting myself in the middle of the smoke filled chapel.

"Charles, we have to get out. There is gunpowder in the cellars, enough to blow half of this building to bits. For all we know, she is outside waiting for us and if we don't leave now, you will never get to meet your unborn child!" He begged with his blue eyes until I finally had to relent.

"Fine…" I said, looking at Gabe. "Did you know about it?" I asked him, referring to Maddie's condition. He smirked.

"Charles, _everybody _knows about it." I glared at him a moment, but he only grinned. I punched him in the arm and followed Dad through the opera to one of the back exits.

Outside, people were in a panic, screaming, crying. Desperately, I searched for Maddie. Not a sign of her. Dad was also feverishly scanning the crowd for her. Aunt Meg saw us and pushed her way through to us.

"Meg, have you seen Madeleine?" Dad asked her and she looked alarmed.

"No, I thought she was with you!" A loud explosion came from inside the building, silencing everyone who was standing there and my stomach sank as dust and smoke poured out.

"_Madeleine!" _I cried, hysterical now, throwing people aside to find her. She couldn't still be in there…Oh God, what if Dupont had killed her? What if her body lay somewhere beneath the stage and would never be found because it was being burned. I fell to the ground.

"Charles, come on…you have to stay strong!" Gabe said, pulling me back to my feet. Another explosion.

Black smoke poured from inside the building until, of all things, it began to rain. Ten horrible minutes passed as we watched the smoke die down a bit. Dad had sunk down to sit on the ground, I could see he was weeping. I had a terrible feeling it was all over. I would never see Maddie again. My heart began to beat horribly fast and I couldn't breathe. All I could see was her face and I knew my life would be emptiness.

"_Look!" _I heard Deirdre cry and I forced myself to look up to see a figure coming through the smoke. It was only a silhouette, but hope began to spring back up into my heart. The smoke cleared a bit revealing a man, carrying a very unconscious Madeleine. He didn't matter right now; all that mattered was that I get to her. I pushed through everyone, Dad right behind me as he laid her on the wet ground gently. He nodded civilly at Dad as I took Madeleine onto my lap, kneeling across from her savior. She was completely limp, but she was breathing.

"Maddie…come on Maddie…" I whispered, rocking with her. Aunt Laney burst through a few people with a wet cloth.

"Charles, here." She said, handing it to me. I pressed the cloth to her face and around her forehead.

"Maddie…Madeleine…" I whispered. I looked up at the man, who I just noticed was wearing a mask. Still, it didn't matter to me at this moment.

"Is she going to be alright?" I asked and he looked at me seriously, answering in a soothing silky voice.

"She's only fainted…she will be fine." He leaned down, touching her face with great care. "Madeleine…Madeleine…" He beckoned her to wake up and as if by command, her eyes began to flutter open. I sighed in pure relief, tears I am sure were streaming down my face.

"Charles…?" She whispered, her voice hoarse. I smiled, sobbing.

"I am here…" _Thank you God…_I wrapped my arms around her so tightly I could hear her laugh softly since she was so exhausted.

"Charles…" She said and I looked down at her.

"What?" I asked and she laughed out loud.

"You're suffocating me." I loosened my grip on her and began to laugh. Dad crouched beside me.

"We're so glad you're alright…" He sighed, kissing her forehead.

"Thanks Dad." She laughed and he smiled. "You don't mind if I call you that, do you?" She asked him and he shook his head.

"Not one bit." She nodded and looked to the other side of her.

"And you…I don't know how I can ever thank you enough." She said, sitting up and putting her arms as tightly as she could manage around that man with the same green eyes as mine.

I saw him smile as he hesitantly brought his arms around her too.

"It isn't necessary…" He said, patting her back as if he were afraid to touch her. She pulled back, still sitting between all of us. Dad held out his hand to him, which the man shook, again hesitant.

"Erik…Christine…" The man held his hand up to silence him.

"I know." He said. "I know…just answer me this…was she in a lot of pain?" I looked at Dad, who sighed. I knew this was hard for him to talk about so I took the liberty.

"Not toward the end, no. She was on heavy medication." The man looked at me silently for a moment, as if sizing me up.

"And you're her son." He said, to which I nodded. A smile almost came to his lips. "You have her curls." He said and I laughed.

"Erik? I presume?" I asked, holding my hand out. He looked at my hand a moment, but took it. His hand was cold, yet felt so warm.

"You presume right. Charles?" He asked. I nodded. He looked at Dad for a moment with a look of approval. "You did her proud, Raoul…" He said, nodding toward me. Dad looked pained, but satisfied at the same time.

"Thank you Erik. That means a lot to me." He smiled as Maddie tried to stand, sitting instantly back down. He chuckled at her.

"Silly girl, you have just been through hell and you want to go running through the streets? Sit down…" She giggled nervously.

"But sir…it's raining." She said, pulling her wet curls out of her face. He helped her to her feet.

"Rain is water…what's wrong? Afraid you'll melt?" She laughed and turned to me. I opened my arms for her and picked her up off the ground.

"Do you love me?" I asked her, and she smiled.

"I suppose." She said and kissed me in the pouring rain. I set her down and walked over to the man who I had hardly just met. I looked back at Maddie, who nodded as she stood next to Dad. I looked into the man's face, since we were about the same height we were eye to eye.

"Thank you so very much." I said, a bit uneasily. He gave me a simple nod, but it just didn't seem like enough. I put my arms around him as well and surely shocked the hell out of him. Still, I felt his arms come up to pat my back as well.

"You're welcome…Charles." I pulled back and tried to capture what was going through his mind, but he was so calm and collected it was impossible. Still for a moment, and maybe I imagined this, I seemed to see a twinkle in his eye as a smile played at his lips. He knew. I knew he did.

"Excuse me, sir?" A small familiar voice came behind me. I turned around to see Aunt Meg standing there, looking meek as a ten year old. I almost laughed.

"Little Giry." He said firmly. She sighed.

"This is ridiculous, I am a woman of forty-one and I am standing here trembling like a child of four." He shrugged.

"I suppose I have that effect on people." He said and she laughed nervously.

"I guess you heard about my mother then?" He nodded.

"I actually read the obituary. You see just after the New Year I returned here from Persia. I saw young Madeleine sing at the funeral." He said and Maddie blushed. "You have a lovely voice young lady." He said and she shrugged.

"I had a good teacher." She said and I laughed, but Dad stepped forward.

"She did. This man is extremely talented." He said, patting my back. Erik smiled.

"Any child of Christine's would be." He said sadly. Suddenly Dad laughed.

"What are we doing still standing here in the rain? Erik, would you care to have some tea at my home?" We all looked at him expectantly as he looked at each person.

"Certainly. I can see there is much to talk about." Deirdre came running to find Aunt Meg and stopped dead when she saw Erik.

"Ma?" She asked and Meg waved that it was fine. Erik gave a low chuckle.

"It seems the world is going to be overrun with Girys." Even Dad laughed.

At the house, I saw that Maddie got into something warm and dry.

"Charles, really…I am not a child." She said and I thought for a moment, grinning when I found the way to win this discussion.

"No you are not a child, Madeleine, but you are carrying mine, so you will do what I say." Her eyes burned at me and she clenched her little fists but she was smiling.

"You are so infuriating!" She said and I held her robe out for her to put her arms in. I kissed her cheek as she did.

"But you love me anyways." I said and she raised an eyebrow.

"You'll do I guess." She said and I laughed as I quickly changed myself.

"So Madeleine…when are you due?" Erik asked as we came into the kitchen. I hadn't really found out, so she counted on her fingers.

"Let's see, I am due in the middle of October, probably a little over a month before Charles's birthday." My eyes widened as I realized this. By next Christmas, there would be a living, breathing child in this house. Dad sipped his tea.

"Well, we could turn Madeleine's room into the nursery since it is so close to yours, but then I doubt you two would want to live here." He said and I looked at Maddie. She shook her head.

"No, I want to live here." I put an arm around her.

"Me too Maddie." Dad turned his attention to Erik.

"So are you going to be staying in Paris, Erik?" He asked casually and Erik looked around the room.

"Well, I probably won't buy a residence of permanent nature here since I have to make trips to Italy frequently to see how my architectural firm is faring. I am considering renting something though." He said, sitting with his legs crossed, sipping his tea. Dad looked at me.

"Well, you know…you are always welcome to stay with us. We have extra rooms." Erik looked genuinely surprised and amused all at once.

"I wouldn't want to impose, besides don't you think it a bit strange to have someone who once used your life as blackmail in your home?" He said and Dad chuckled.

"I think we're quite past that by now, don't you. Besides, if it bothers me, think of it as a favor to Charles. To Christine. She would have wanted this. You must understand Erik, we thought you had died." Erik nodded slightly.

"That had been my intention. I thought if she believed I was dead, it would be easier for her to be happy."

Dad sighed unhappily.

"She was as happy as she could be, but I know she always hoped. Did you ever marry or have other children Erik?" He asked and the man actually chuckled.

"God no…could you imagine me being married, or raising a child, God forbid?" He asked and Dad even smiled.

"You would have done fine." He said, looking at me. I held Maddie. This was all so strange. Erik looked at me too.

"Never in my wildest dreams would I have imagined that she would have been pregnant. I was so weak at the time…it had been pathetic really, but she was such a kind hearted girl. She never showed me anything but respect. Which I didn't deserve, but that was Christine. Put everyone else first." Dad nodded.

"She had her moments though." Erik nodded.

"Don't we all?"

A knock on the door turned our attention for the moment. Therese opened it and let Nadir in the house. He looked a bit excited.

"Hello everyone, sorry to bother you all, but I think I have some good news…" He stopped dead in his tracks when he saw Erik. His mouth dropped open as Erik stood. "I was just going to tell everyone you were staying in Paris!" He cried.

"Daroga…my friend. I trust you have been well?" He asked, and Nadir had to sit down.

"You are a crazy old bastard, you know that, don't you?" He said and Erik smiled, amused.

"As if you would ever let me forget it…come daroga, we must go catch up. It has been far too long." He said, motioning for the man to follow. He turned back to come over to me.

"You take care of this lady and hold onto her with everything you have, do you hear?" He said and I nodded.

"I intend to do just that sir. We are to be married." He nodded his approval.

"Very well, I shall be by in the morning to see you all again." He kissed Maddie's hand.

"By the way Madeleine, you played Aminta to perfection I do hope you continue to sing." She looked up at me.

"I will sir, thank you." She said shyly. He smiled slightly at her before turning toward Dad.

"I think I would very much like to stay with you when I am in Paris." He said.

"Christine would have wanted that." Dad said and Erik nodded, looking at us one last time before leading Nadir out of the house.


	40. Chapter 40

1MADDIE

"Madeleine, have you seen my suit jacket?" Charles called from the bedroom as I lay in the bath on the day of Daniel and Deirdre's wedding a week after the fire at the opera.

"No...did you look on the chair?" I called, just wanting to enjoy every moment of the warmth.

"Yes! It isn't there!" He called back and I rolled my eyes, getting out of the tub and pulling my robe around me. I walked into the bedroom right to the chair and moved my dress out of the way, revealing his jacket.

"You have to move things dear Charles." I teased him and he grinned shaking his head and coming in for a kiss, which I dodged, taking my dress and moving to go behind the screen to change. He of course, caught me around the waist and took a kiss anyway.

"Have I ever told you I loved you?" He asked and I messed his curls.

"Only about twenty times a day." I said, kissing his nose as he let me go and get dressed.

I walked downstairs as Charles finished getting dressed to find Erik sitting at the table with his legs elegantly crossed as he always sat, sipping his tea and reading the morning paper. He didn't even look up but managed to say,

"Good morning Madeleine." Always formal, this man was.

"Morning Erik..." I said, sitting across from him and studying him. He looked up, feeling my eyes on him.

"Yes?" He asked and I smiled.

"Sorry...it just must be awful." I said and he looked confused.

"What?" He asked, for the first time letting down his cool exterior. I grinned.

"Erik when is the last time you laughed? I mean_ laughed..._" An amused smiled played at his lips.

"I can't remember." He said, staring at me.

He sighed and challenged me with his green eyes.

"Why is it that you're the only one who isn't afraid to say what you're thinking to me?" He asked and I shrugged.

"I'm not afraid of you Erik." I said and he looked toward the stairs. Again, I couldn't control my mouth. "Charles wants to know you...he's just too afraid to say..." The man's eyes darkened.

"Trust me dear girl...it's better that he doesn't know me...he'd only hate me." Erik replied, his voice ever calm, always masking his true emotions as he sipped his tea nonchalantly.

"Why? For loving his mother? For saving my life and his own child's? What?" Erik sighed.

"You don't know Madeleine...I'm not a good person. I've killed people for the perverse pleasure of watching them die. I deceived a sixteen year old young woman into believing I was a fictional Angel of Music. I used her fiancé as the key to keeping her as my bride...I terrorized everyone at the opera house. Shall I go on?" He asked, his voice low.

I sighed, looking at him with pity.

"You think Charles is so quick to judge? He loved me even after he found out what I was..." I said softly and Erik turned to face me completely.

"And what is that my dear?" He asked and I sighed heavily.

"The daughter of a prostitute...an orphan. A nothing." I said and he took my hand across the table.

"You're not a nothing..." He said and I shrugged.

"Not anymore." I said and he shook his head.

"You never were, and don't ever let me hear you say that again...do you hear?" He asked and I nodded, trying to hold back my smile.

"Am I missing something?" Charles asked, standing in the doorway of the kitchen, buttoning his jacket. I laughed.

"No you damned fop, you take longer to get ready than Benedetta did." He laughed richly and came into the kitchen.

"Good morning Erik." He said politely and much more reserved than he was with me. The man gave him a nod.

"Raoul told me to inform the two of you that he will meet you at the church." Erik said and Charles nodded.

"Aren't you coming to the wedding?" He asked, almost hopefully. Erik smiled slightly.

"I'm afraid weddings aren't in my list of favorite things to do." He said and I gave Charles a pat on the arm, telling him we needed to get going. He nodded, sighing.

"Well then...er...goodbye Erik." He said, unsure of what to do or say still. Erik smiled warmly at both of us.

"Goodbye...I shall see you both later. Maybe we could talk about your interest in architecture dear boy." Erik looked at me for approval and I nodded. Sure enough, like a child on Christmas morning, Charles's bright green eyes lit up and he nodded.

"Will do sir. Good day." He took my arm and I looked back to wink at the man sitting at the table before rejoining my fiancé."

The wedding was like all other weddings. Long and tearful. I stood beside Deirdre holding her bouquet and my own. Charles stood beside Daniel with a grin on his face. Although he was still painfully thin, the life seemed to have come back into his face which gave me hope. Camille stood beside me along with her two other sisters and Gabe along with two of Daniel's friends stood beside Charles. I faintly listened to the vows...I wasn't much of a wedding person. Sure, I was getting married, but how silly it was when I heard Daniel and Deirdre become a bit choked up at their vows. I mean, after all, it's only recited words. Just say them and get on with it. Right? Well, I for one wasn't going to cry at my wedding. I swore it. I only wished Madame Giry could have been here to see it. I smiled at Raoul from where I stood and he smiled back.

"How was the wedding?" Erik asked as we all walked in later that night.

"It was nice." I said, suddenly a bit hungry. Maybe a piece of fruit to hold me over...cravings had slowly begun to come over me. Not often but every once in a while lately, I would really want a pear or maybe some grapes. Grapes sounded good. I ate three of them at once. Charles and Erik both stared at me as if I were loony.

"Leave me alone," I said with my mouth full, "I have a right...I am pregnant." I crinkled my nose at them and went back to eating the lovely fruit.

"About that architecture Charles..." Erik said, motioning for Charles to follow him. I waved at them as they left the room and sighed.

"Madeleine?" A soft voice asked.

"For the love of Christ, I am pregnant!" I cried and spun around to see Raoul.

"Oh...Dad. Sorry..." I said lamely. I tried to call him Dad whenever I could. It was still taking a lot of getting used to. He smiled.

"It's quite alright...can we talk?" He asked and I nodded, following him with the bowl of grapes into his office. He shut the door.

"I remember you talking about not having a real picture of Chloe..." He said and I nodded.

"So...? All of our things would have long since been trash." I said and he sighed.

"Not quite..." He turned to pick up a picture and handed it to me. I breathed as I saw my mother standing in Raoul's embrace in a hotel room. They looked absolutely Heavenly together. What a beautiful couple they could have been. _She ran..._And he still had loved Christine so desperately. How horrible it must have been to be torn between two loves.

"You loved her..." I said, looking at the photo still and he nodded.

"I did...I do...and she has somehow still managed to give me the greatest gift of all...you." I smiled, blushing.

"Thank you Raoul..." I said as he took my hands.

"Maddie...as much as I loved Charles and still do, something was always holding us apart and that was Christine's and my own secrets. It broke my heart that my blood would not pulse through Charles or my grandchildren's veins. Not that something like that would ever change my feelings for Charles...because God knows he is a wonderful and loving son. I always wanted a little girl who looked just like Christine. I prayed for it. Then I saw you and you became one of the lights in my life. It actually frightened me that I was so fond of you...but now Maddie, you have given me the greatest gift of all."

I bit my lip, squeezing his hand.

"What is that?" I asked and he grinned.

"Not only did I get a daughter who I created out of the rare and brief love I shared with Chloe, I am getting a grandchild who is not only a part of you and Charles, but Christine, Erik and I. Now we can all share something and it is a perfect kind of love. It is the most wonderful thing I have ever felt." He said, tears formed in his eyes.

"Thank you..." I said, hugging him.

"Which brings me to my next point. Weddings...I want you and Charles to get married soon...and spare no expense whatsoever on your wedding..." I laughed.

"You know I am not much for materialistic things such as that." I said and he nodded.

"You deserve it though, both of you have striven so hard to get where you are. And I am sure when the opera reopens you will both be enchanting the audiences again." I sighed.

"Maybe...why the sudden rush for us to marry? Because I am pregnant?" I asked and Raoul nodded.

"In a way...I think that you deserve to be a bride before you are a mother...before your feet swell and your back hurts." I grinned, thinking about how ridiculous I would soon look.

"I think you're right."


	41. Chapter 41

CHARLES

"It seems, young man, that we were destined to meet for I remember reviewing some of your sketches at my architectural firm." Erik said, sitting in the armchair in our library. "You are very talented." I sat across from him.

"Thank you sir…and may I say that your designs are what inspired me to pursue a career in architecture." The man looked pleasantly surprised.

"Well…I uh…thank you." He said. I sighed, not wanting to discuss business.

"Did you have any idea that my mother was pregnant?" I asked him, suddenly driving right to the point. Remaining perfectly calm he replied,

"No I did not." He said, "I made her leave me…I had nothing to offer her. No home, no security, no future. You see, one of the things your mother loved was the sun. She loved people and life. I couldn't give her those five stories below the opera. Not to mention I had killed people and may have been executed anyway."

I held my breath for a moment before looking back at him.

"If you had known, would things have been different?" I asked and an amused look came to his face.

"I…don't know. I want to say yes, but just look at how well you turned out. I honestly don't know if I would have been able to give you the life you lead." He said seriously and I sighed.

"Do you think that's what matters to me Erik? Material things and money? If you love someone enough…" I said and he held up a hand, still amazing me with his calm exterior.

"I loved your mother, never doubt that…I loved her _so _much that I let her go. It nearly killed me dear boy. You see, I knew she would come back, so I told Nadir to inform the papers I was dead and to leave me, never looking back."

Finally, some sort of physical emotion was beginning to show in his face. _Ah Erik Destler, so you do have feelings…_He went on.

"I never had a father, hell, I hardly had a mother…what do I know of parenting? I would have been so afraid to ruin you, I would have ruined you!" I took a breath.

"Erik," I laughed, "I am twenty-five years old…I think it's safe to say that I am no longer in need of parenting…at least in the sense that I don't need to be disciplined and taken care of. This may sound cliché, but I always felt like I didn't belong. I mean, I don't look like anyone in the family, they were always whispering. My Aunt, God love her, never did but Dad and Mother were always chittering to each other."

Erik looked at me for a moment, a bit confused.

"So…what? Are you saying you want us to hug and kiss and you can call me Papa? I mean, let's face it Charles…it's not like Raoul doesn't love you enough. He raised you." I almost laughed out loud at the picture of that description in my mind, but I held it back.

"No Erik…of course not, but I _would _like to have some sort of relationship with you for the love of God…I mean, my mother obviously cared very deeply for you. If you were good enough for her than you are good enough to me." I said and he smiled.

"No one was good enough for your mother. God, could you imagine me raising a child?" He said, almost jokingly and I allowed myself to laugh.

"You know what? Just for that I think I'll call you Papa." I said, folding my arms and he raised an eyebrow.

"Don't even dare." Erik said, an amused smile playing at his lips.

"What's so funny?" I asked him. He chuckled.

"I am sorry, I was just imagining the little devils you and Madeleine will produce." I nodded.

"Frightening, isn't it?"

"Charles?" Maddie's voice called from outside the library.

"In here Maddie!" I called back and she appeared in the doorway with a small grin on her face. Dad walked in behind her.

"What's going on?" I asked them and Madeleine ran to me to take my hands.

"We are getting married!" She said and I laughed.

"I know…you already said yes." I said, stroking her cheek. She shook her head.

"I want to do it in two weeks." She said and my mouth dropped.

"She deserves to be a bride first." Erik said behind me and I turned to look at him.

"Well, of course she does." I said, still surprised, "I just didn't expect you to be so excited about it!" She smiled, motioning for me to follow her and leaving the room. I looked at Erik who chuckled.

"Go, you dolt!" I ran after her as Dad and Erik sat down together.

She was perched on the bed after quickly changing into her nightclothes behind the screen. Her curls were wild and loose. God, she was lovely with those almond shaped hazel eyes and that full pouting mouth. I climbed in beside her and pressed a kiss just under her ear. She laughed.

"Oh Charles…if I didn't know better, I'd say you were trying to seduce me!" She said as I kissed her lips.

"You're damn right I am…" I said huskily and she pushed me off.

"I don't think so Monsieur…" She laughed, "You may have gotten away with it once, but it isn't happening until our wedding night…" She said and I sighed, lying down.

"Fine…" I said, pretending to pout, although it _was _quite hard to concentrate with her bare legs showing like that…

She layed beside me, resting her head on my chest.

"I was thinking about names today...baby names and all I mean." She said, and I had to laugh at how uncomfortable she still seemed about being a mother.

"It isn't a crime to think about your child Madeleine." I said, kissing her hair. She smacked me.

"I just thought that if it's a girl, you know maybe we could call her Christine. I think that would be really nice, don't you?" She asked, her eyes wide with a bit of excitement in them. I held her softly.

"Yes, it would be I am very honored that you would want to name our child after my mother." She shrugged.

"She _is _your mother...and I know how much she loved you." She said and I looked at her, surprised.

"You do?" I asked and she nodded, pointing to my desk.

"I found some pictures of you and her in there...and even one of you and Raoul...uh...Dad." She said. I pulled her head back down to my chest, pulling the covers over us.

"Are you nervous at all Maddie, you know about having the baby and such." She sighed, thinking for a moment.

"Well, even though the thought of an eight pound human being pushing it's way out of my body _is _a bit jarring, I would have to say no. Women have been doing it since the dawn of time and here we all are...I'll be fine." I played with her curls, twisting the shining chocolate strands around my fingers.

"I want to lay like this forever..." I said, sighing tiredly and happily. She giggled.

"That wouldn't be too productive now would it?" I kissed her forehead and she sighed into my chest.

"I love you Charles...I just want you to know that." She said in which my reaction was to swallow the lump that alway formed in my throat when she said those words.

"I love you too Maddie, my God but I do..." I said back, almost happy to the point of losing my mind. I was allowed to tell her how I felt for her over and over again and she believed me. She loved me too. I knew she was close to sleep because her breathing had become slower, but I still had one more question as I smiled in the dim light of the room.

"Maddie?" I asked.

"Mmm?" She replied and I sighed.

"What if it's a boy...?" She sat up and looked at me with an impish gleam in her eye.

"I thought we could name him after your father..." She said and I was confused.

"Raoul?" I asked but she shook her head, her smile remaining.


	42. Chapter 42

MADDIE

Mine and Charles's wedding wasn't a huge affair, at both of our requests and it was taking place at the house not in church. We invited people we knew and people we liked. Deirdre of course, was standing up with me as my matron of honor and Charles had Gabe as his best man. The only other person standing up with us was Erik and he was just standing beside Charles at his request. Raoul was obviously going to walk me down the aisle that had been created between the two sides of seats in the ballroom, and stand beside me as well. My dress was a very light purple gown made of delicate satin and adorned with tiny bows. We actually had found it two days before the wedding. I didn't want to wear white since it didn't feel appropriate to me. Deirdre pinned my hair up though and I did wear a few white flowers in my hair. I carried white roses, which I thought were lovely. As we walked down the aisle, I am sure I bruised Raoul's arm with how nervous I felt.

"Maddie…relax." He said, patting my hand. "You look wonderful…" I sighed, looking at Charles nervously.

"I feel sick…" I said and he chuckled.

"You're fine dear…once you say your vows all you will feel is happiness." He replied as we reached the altar and kissed my cheek.

"Who gives this woman to be married?" The priest asked and I looked at Raoul, who was grinning.

"I do." He said, stepping to the side between Deirdre and I.

"Friends and Family…" The priest went on, "Welcome to the marriage of Charles Gérard de Chagny and Madeleine Lisette Denton. You have been asked to gather here to witness and share in the joy of this union." He went on to talk about marriage before asking us to recite our vows. Charles went first, holding my hands as we'd been told to do.

"Madeleine…There was darkness for a long time and then there was light, and that light was you. Your love has given me wings and our journey begins today. I pledge before our friends and family to be your husband from this day forward. Let us make of our two lives one life. I want you for today, tomorrow and forever."

He was failing miserably at attempting to hide the fact he was crying and I couldn't help but laugh as I surprisingly felt tears burn my own eyes much to my horror. I had promised myself I wouldn't cry. It was silly and stupid.

"Madeleine?" The priest asked me and I looked at him.

"What?" I asked biting my quivering lip in fear.

"It's your turn dear." He said with an amused smile and I gulped, taking a slow breath. Erik smiled slightly as he mouthed the words "You're fine," to me. I found my voice and quietly began to recite my vows.

"I have dreamed my whole life of having someone as wonderful as you love me the way you do. I give myself to you as your wife, and I promise here to treasure for all of my days the love we celebrate today. Let us bring together our lives and find ourselves anew each day."

I had to bring one of my hands to my eyes, as they were now overflowing. Charles just gently held my hand in his patient way.

"The rings please." The priest said looking at Gabe who feigned not knowing where they were. Charles glared at him as he laughed and patted Charles's back, producing the gold bands. "Madeleine, place the ring at Charles's finger." The priest added. I did this as he said,

"Madeleine Lisette, will you take Charles Gérard as your husband, in happiness and with patience and understanding, through conflict and tranquility?"

I breathed, looking at Charles, whose eyes were red.

"I will." I said softly, sliding the ring onto his finger as he smiled at it, looking back up at me. The priest turned to Charles who place the ring at my finger.

"Charles Gérard, will you take Madeleine Lisette as your wife, in happiness and with patience and understanding, through conflict and tranquility?" Charles nodded, biting his lip before he sniffed, unable to hide it at all now. I laughed, through my own sobbing.

"I will." He managed to get out and placed the ring all the way on my finger before wiping under my eyes softly with his thumbs as the priest continued to conclude the wedding.

"In the years, which shall bring Charles and Madeleine into greater age and wisdom, we hope that their love shall be ever young; that they shall be able to always recover from moments of despair. In this hope, may they keep the vows made on this day, in freedom, teaching each other who they are, what they yet shall be, enabling them to know that, in the fullness of being, they are more than themselves and more than each other, that they are all of us, and that together we share joyously the fruits of life on this earth, our home. Since Charles and Madeleine have declared their love to each other before family and friends, I now greet them with you as husband and wife. You may kiss." He finished and Charles leaned down, gently touching my lips with his as our friends and family applauded. I was Charles's wife.

"Oh Maddie…" He said, pulling me close. "I am going to make you so happy." He said and I laughed,

"You already have." I said, touching his cheek tenderly. God he was beautiful. Not only handsome but beautiful.

"There will be refreshments shortly, if you would all just make yourselves comfortable." Raoul said, as workers began to clear the seats and set up for the reception.

"I just want you to know I am never going to cry like that again!" I said defiantly and he tickled me gently, wrapping his arms around my waist as he stood behind me.

"Oh yes you are Maddie…when that baby is born you're going to bawl, and don't even deny it!" He chuckled kissing my ear. "Do we have to stay for the party?" He asked a slight whine beneath his voice. I nodded.

"Yes Charles, we _have _to stay. It's our party!" He sighed loudly.

"Fine…" I laughed at my crazy husband.

"I feel like I am going to wake up tomorrow in that dormitory bed alone…and this will have all been a dream. Even you." I said to Charles as we danced once the party had gotten underway.

"Then let you sleep forever…for it isn't a dream my Maddie…" He said, pulling at his collar agitated.

"What is the matter?" I asked him and he sighed.

"This damn collar is bothering me." He groaned and I giggled.

"Charles, no one said you had to wear it all night…take off your suit coat silly!" I said, pulling it off for him and throwing it across a chair.

"See? You're already taking care of me." He said, swinging me around.

"Can I cut in?" I turned to see Erik standing there and laughed.

"Certainly…my husband is a bit antsy…" I said as Alana came up behind Charles and grabbed his arm, winking at me.

"I'll just take him off your hands for a few minutes." She said, laughing and I nodded.

"You're too kind." I said as Charles stuck his tongue out at me. A gesture which I repeated. Erik chuckled, pulling me in to dance with me.

"Erik, has Charles talked to you yet?" I asked him.

"You mean about taking my last name?" He asked and I nodded. He sighed.

"It is truly his choice Madeleine…I am not sure if Raoul would want that." He said and I shook my head.

"Charles spoke to him about it and it was actually his idea." I replied. He nodded.

"Raoul always was too noble for his own good. Stupid boy." He said and I laughed.

"He's forty-six, nearly forty-seven and you still call him a boy?" I asked and he shrugged.

"Madeleine dear…compared to me, he still is. I am sixty-one after all." I gasped.

"You _are?_" I asked, in a state of shock and he chuckled.

"Yes…I was twenty years older than Christine." My eyes widened.

"Yes, I knew you were older than her, but you look so…_young!_ I wouldn't believe you to be a day over fifty!" I said and he laughed again.

"Well that certainly gives my confidence a boost. You're much different than Christine you know." He said and I looked at him.

"Is that…good?" I asked and he nodded.

"It would have done her good to be something like you." He said and I blushed fiercely, sending him into laughter again. It was the first time I'd seen him actually laugh out loud.

Charles was waiting for me in our room after the guests had left. He was grinning like an idiot and I knew what was coming. To my complete and utter shock, he produced luggage and a key.

"What is this?" I asked with a laugh and he smirked.

"We have a suite waiting for us in the Bordeaux Hotel, courtesy of Nadir, Dad and Erik." He said and I nearly swooned excited. I'd never stayed in a hotel, much less a suite before.

"Are you serious?" I asked and he nodded, as I pulled on my cloak and he helped me into the carriage downstairs after I'd kissed all three men gratefully on the cheek.

"Don't stay away too long." Raoul teased, holding me tightly and I laughed.

"Don't worry Dad…we'll be home by tomorrow night." Charles hugged Raoul and shook Nadir's hand before he stopped in front of Erik, obviously lost. Erik shook his head and chuckled holding his arms out jokingly as Charles stepped into them, just as teasingly.

"Thanks Papa." He said, winking at him and Erik shot him a look.

"Oh go enjoy your wedding night you silly boy." He said with a small chuckle. I just looked at Raoul and shrugged before taking Charles's hand and we ran to the waiting carriage.

"Charles." I said, lying in his arms after we'd finally consummated our union that night.

"What is it?" He asked with his eyes closed and I smiled, pulling the covers over our bodies. I was just barely beginning to swell in the middle, but I had yet to feel anything. I made myself comfortable in the crook of his arm with my head on his shoulder.

"What kind of parents do you think we'll be?" I asked and he opened his eyes.

"I don't know." He said truthfully, "But one thing is for sure…this baby will be loved. From Aunt Laney to Aunt Meg to Dad and Erik. I only wish Granny Giry could see him born." He said and I laughed.

"How do you know it will be a boy?" I asked and he shrugged.

"I don't…I wouldn't mind if it was a girl…but seeing my cousins, they're so damn mouthy…not to mention you…" I smacked him, laughing.

"You are a bastard." I said, hitting him with the pillow. He pulled it out of my grip and grabbed me into another round of passionate kissing. I could tell it was going to be a long night…


	43. Chapter 43

1CHARLES

"Charles?" Maddie cried in late August, she was entering the last month of her pregnancy. It had been fairly easy for her except now she was extremely exhausted and hot since it was late summer. She'd first felt the baby in the middle of the night the last week of April about two weeks after our wedding and she'd woken me up to feel too. Of course I was out of it and practically had fallen back to sleep with my hand on her stomach until the faintest twitch had made my eyes pop open. It was the strangest thing I had ever felt. We'd laughed hysterically as she'd described it as something was poking her on the inside. In May, the movements became visible if you watched long enough. After our wedding, she began to expand remarkably, it seemed at the end of each week, her clothes fit a bit tighter. She hadn't worn a corset since _Don Juan Triumphant._ Her feet and face hadn't swelled like many girls' do.

I found her sitting on the back porch with Erik and Dad...her legs propped up. She put her arms up for me to help her up and I shot both of them a look. Dad shrugged.

"You couldn't pull her up?" I asked, taking her hands and easily lifting her to her feet. As round as she was, she was still little enough for me to pick up put my arms around.

"She's your wife!" Dad laughed, glancing at Erik who sipped at his tea nonchalantly. It was one of the most casual times I had ever seen him. He didn't have a suit jacket on today and the crisp white sleeves of his dress shirt were rolled to his elbows. He'd just returned from Italy and was planning to open an office of C & E Associates in Paris next winter, which I would be helping to run. Maddie and I were retiring temporarily from performing, at least until the baby was a year old and old enough to have a nanny while we were at the opera. Erik had come back and was staying for the next few months, wanting to be here when the baby was born.

It was so strange. It hadn't seemed real until the day Maddie had emerged from the bathroom in her open robe shaking her head.

"What's the matter?" I asked her and she'd smiled.

"Nothing really...I really am pregnant, aren't I?" She'd still had trouble getting used to the idea, but as it had settled, she became more excited about it. Especially when we decorated her old room into the nursery. We'd gone with a lot of white and decided we would paint the nursery a definitive color when the baby was born and we knew if it was a boy or girl. I was indifferent to what I wanted it to be, although I admit, the idea of having a daughter scared the hell out of me because I knew next to _nothing _about girls. Not to mention, I didn't even want to think about the day she'd become a teenager and begin to take an interest in romance. No...one day at a time Charles...she isn't even born yet. She might not even be a girl!

I helped Maddie to the bathroom for what seemed like the tenth time she had to go in an hour.

"Thank you sweetheart." She said, every single time with that mischievous gleam in those hazel eyes. I simply shook my head and kissed her curls.

"You're welcome _dumpling._" I said mockingly and she pretended to pout, so I kissed her and soon our breathing was heavy. Her pregnancy had not changed the fact that we loved to make love with each other...not one bit, although it was understandably a bit more difficult now. I felt the baby jerk as her stomach was pressed against my own. I sighed, setting her down.

"I got the message!" I said touching it as she laughed.

"Oh you're so stupid Charles!" She cried, caressing my hair which was again getting long and curly as I was long overdue for a haircut. I had regained all of the weight I'd lost earlier in the year and then some sympathy weight, which was quickly burned off when we decorated the nursery.

Madeleine was fiercely protective of me for some reason and whenever I left the house, she'd kiss me passionately and greeted me eagerly when I came home. Erik had told us about his parents and how his father had died before he was born. Funny enough, we had the exact same names as his parents, and I think it spooked Maddie to the point where she was afraid the same thing would happen to me. I reassured her every night that I would be careful and I would always come home to her. As tough as her exterior was, she was so delicate at heart and I reveled in the fact that she needed me as desperately as I needed her, though she was loathe to admit it.

Two days before he due date, September twenty-second, she went into labor while I was out. I came home to find the house in chaos. Deirdre and Dan had stopped by and her water had broken about an hour before. I instantly fell into a panic and dashed up the stairs without saying hello to anyone. I found her sitting calmly between Dad and Erik, talking and laughing. Out of breath and unsure of myself I said confused,

"Did I miss it?" She giggled.

"No silly, it will be a while...sit." She said, motioning to the spot beside her. I did gladly, kissing her and touching her stomach, feeling the baby still very much in her. She laughed.

"Oh you are such a dolt but I love you anyway." She said and Dad chuckled.

"Maddie...give him a break...he's never seen any of this." He said and Erik laughed too.

"Well neither have I, but you don't see me running around like a chicken with its head cut off."

I glared at him.

"Good analogy _Father._" I said, always using the sentiment to get to him. He just chuckled, satisfied with himself and kissed Maddie's forehead.

"We shall be downstairs...call us when something happens." He said walking out with Dad. They were the strangest pair I had ever seen, but they were friends and for that I was thankful. Maddie sucked in a breath in pain.

"Contraction...ugh." She said and I scooted closer to her.

"I'm sorry." I said and she laughed through the pain.

"You should be, you're the one who got me drunk and seduced me!" I laughed out loud.

"Me? The twenty-five year old virgin! Seduced you? I believe _you _were the little enchantress that night Madeleine de Chagny." She huffed.

"Ha!" She said and winced again. "Ugh...it hurts worse than I thought it would." She said.

Two hours later, she was ready to push and I was the only person besides the midwife allowed in the room, and Maddie had had to plead for me to be allowed. The woman was old and set in her ways, but she finally relented. I knew Dad was pacing furiously downstairs as Erik probably sat calmly in a chair, either sipping his tea or reading the paper. I could picture it in perfect detail and almost laughed, but Maddie crying out in pain stopped me. After what seemed like hours, but couldn't have been more than twenty minutes, the midwife said she could see the head and asked me if I wanted to have a look. I looked at Maddie who nodded and terrified I said yes and peeked around her knee nearly fainting at the sight. It just didn't seem possible for something that big to come out of someone so small.

"Oh God Charles! Is something wrong with it?" Maddie asked and I looked again. Other than being completely covered in birth there was nothing I could tell. There was a mass of black hair on top of it's head.

"No...it's just...good God." Was all I could say, unable to tear my eyes away in disbelief.

She actually laughed, before pushing again and grunting.

"This is ridiculous!" She said falling back in exhaustion as the shoulders emerged.

"Madeleine, again." The midwife instructed patiently as Maddie looked at her as if she were batty.

"You've got to be..." She shut up then and pushed, tears from pushing so hard coming out of the corners of her eyes.

"You're doing great..." I said dumbly, really unsure of what I should say. She just looked at me helplessly. The midwife nodded.

"Your husband is right, now one more push and you will have your child." She said and Maddie bore down with everything she had and practically screamed until the baby fell naturally into the midwife's waiting hands.

"What is it?" I asked holding Maddie's hand as she gasped to regain her breath.

"You have a son Monsieur." She said and I breathed in relief.

"Oh thank God." I said and Maddie smacked my arm.

"Charles!" She scolded, but I shrugged. I had been having nightmares about raising a girl and having to beat off the young men when she was of age to court.

"I just mean I am happy." I corrected and she let herself relax as the midwife dealt with afterbirth. She cleaned him off first and wrapped him in the blanket she'd prepared for him. Just a simple white blanket.

"What does he look like?" Maddie asked me as the midwife was cleaning him up after cutting the cord and I thought a moment.

"He looks a bit like an old man..." I teased and she cried out.

"Charles!" She said again and I laughed, kissing her cheek.

"Well forgive me my love, but I saw him covered in slime. It was a bit hard to tell, but he has a mop of black hair just like mine."

"Hopefully he doesn't get your foul attitude..." She scowled as the midwife finally produced him for us to see. I must say, he looked much better without the slime, cute even. Actually he was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen, besides Madeleine and although I will never admit this to Madeleine, I had to swallow the lump in my throat as she took him from the old woman before the midwife left.

"Oh, this is the strangest thing I have ever felt..." She said, looking at him. He was not crying as he had when he'd first emerged, but he had a determined look in his eyes as if he were trying to figure out who she was. He was enthralled with her, wrapping the tiny fingers around her index finger. That was when she began to cry. "I told myself I wasn't going to do this and look at me, crying like the little woman I am." She said, looking up at me with tears running down her cheeks. I touched her face gently.

"You're allowed to cry Madeleine...this is your son, _our _son." I added, as she placed him into my arms, his tiny body fitting easily into the crook between my elbow and forearm.

"He's bigger than I thought he would be." I said and she laughed.

"I like him much better from the outside." she said."He's going to look just like you, you know." She said and I nodded.

"I can see that."Dad's voice came from the other side of the door.

"Can we see the baby yet?" He asked and I covered Maddie up gently, setting the baby back in her arms.

"Yes Dad, Erik, come in." I said and the door flew open.

"What do we have?" Dad asked, looking at Maddie expectantly and she giggled.

"It's a boy." She said, looking up at a silent Erik.

"How was he?" She asked him referring to Dad, who laughed.

"How was _I?_ _He _was the one tearing through the halls furiously grumbling about it taking so long and every time we could hear you grunt he began to chew his nail." Erik glared at Dad.

"You always were a liar Raoul de Chagny." He grumbled and Dad laughed, patting his back.

"Oh come off it you crazy old man and look at your grandson." He said as Erik looked at the baby hesitantly, sighing when he saw the baby yawn.

"Is this what Charles looked like?" He asked and I looked up, surprised. He'd never seemed to care before but when Dad nodded, grinning from ear to ear as he looked at the baby Erik gave a slight nod, hiding his face a bit. I knew he was fighting his emotions. It was the exact same look I got on my face when I felt that way.

"Have you named him yet?" Dad asked and I looked at Maddie, remembering our talk so long ago. She nodded mischievously. I grinned down at her, kissing her cheek. Both men looked at me expectantly as I touched the baby's thick hair before chuckling to myself.

"His name is Erik Raoul Destler de Chagny." I said, as Maddie and I exchanged satisfied looks and Erik nearly fell over Dad.


	44. Chapter 44

MADDIE

Erik Raoul was eight pounds when he was born and I began to cry the second he touched me. Charles would never let me live it down, but I didn't care because he was the sweetest thing I had ever held. The first few weeks were trying, to say the least. I believe I got maybe two hours of sleep per night. Charles however, woke right up with me as I fed him and rocked with him. He was so overjoyed to be a father he didn't know what to do with himself. Sometimes during the day, when he would be working on a design, he would call me into the room and pretend like he needed something. As soon as I walked in with the baby, he was cradling him and talking to him. I could only laugh at him, grateful that he was so thrilled. Everything about our baby was Charles. His eyes, his hair, his lips. He was beautiful.

One night when Erik Raoul was around one month old, I woke up in the middle of the night after a long day. The baby hadn't been feeling well and I was exhausted because I had been up all night the night before and all day long. Charles had been at the new office for C & E Associates with Erik all day pulling together the books and some new architects. Dad finally took the baby from me at around eight o'clock that night and told me to go to bed. Actually…he sort of ordered me to since I had begun to protest. I woke up alone in the bed and began to worry fiercely about Charles, thinking he wasn't home yet. _Oh dear God…please let him be alright…_I prayed, visions of Charles's grandfather dying running through my head. I got up and went to check in the cradle which was also empty.

I began to panic as I threw on my robe and ran down the stairs into the sitting room where I could see the faint glow of a dying fire illuminating the room. I walked in, trying to control the beating of my heart to find Charles asleep on the couch with the baby on his chest, also sleeping. He'd thrown his suit coat over the armchair and his tie was undone. He had a content little smile on his face, his wedding ring gleaming as he held the baby's back. I knelt beside the couch, calming down and sighing in relief as I kissed him on the cheek and smoothed my baby's wild black hair down. I ran my hand gently through Charles's dark curls and whispered,

"Charles…" His eyes fluttered open as he turned his head to look at me.

"Maddie…" He said, smiling when he realized it was me, "What time is it?" He asked and I looked back at the grandfather clock in the room.

"It's two o'clock in the morning…why don't you come to bed?" I asked, carefully taking Erik Raoul from him as he sat up.

"I walked in and Dad was trying to get him to stop crying so I took him. He said you were asleep thank God. He seems to be alright now though…" He said, kissing the baby's head as he slept soundly against my chest.

"He'll be fine… I said, adjusting him in my arms. Charles picked up his suit coat and put his arm around me, guiding me up the stairs tiredly. I set the baby in his cradle and crawled back into our bed sinking into the pillows. Charles quickly undressed and just as I was nearly asleep he kissed my shoulder.

"Maddie…" He said and my eyes opened as I turned to look at him.

"What is it?" I asked and he smiled, touching my hair.

"I want to have a little girl…" He said and I nearly choked.

"_Now?_ Charles! I haven't even lost the weight I gained with little Erik yet!" I laughed and he shook his head, kissing my nose.

"No silly girl…when he's a little older." He said and I giggled.  
"Why the sudden urge for a daughter?" I asked, laying my head on his bare chest. He held my hand.

"So I can spoil her the way I spoil you." He said and I laughed again. He did love to spoil me. I finally had my own wardrobe of mostly new dresses.

"Well, we can work on her after Erik turns one…" I said and he nodded.

"No rush love…I was just telling you that I am ready for a daughter…so it doesn't matter what the next one is." He chuckled, going between a sigh and a yawn.

"Your birthday is in a month Charles…we've known each other for almost a year." I said, draping my leg over his. He took a deep breath and I knew he was becoming aroused. It had been nearly a week since we had last made love with him so busy at the new office and me tied up with the baby. He pulled me up to him for a kiss and sighed against my lips.

"You know Maddie, I don't have to be at work tomorrow morning…it's Saturday…" He said sliding his hand to my hip. I smirked.

"Good darling, then you can get up with your son and I'll just go to sleep…" I said, teasingly pulling away from him, but he held my forearms and pulled me back to him, crushing his lips passionately to mine and soon I was panting right along with him.

"You're not going anywhere woman..." He said huskily, ripping the chemise off of me and flipping me under him.

"Oh my love...I have missed you this week." He said with his lips to my neck. I simply replied with a small squeak as he moved his hands gently.

"Charles..." I said softly and he silenced me with his lips, his beautiful full lips.

"I'm here Maddie..." He said and took me, sending us both into euphoric bliss. We pulled apart eventually about an hour later.

"Good God Charles...I'd hate to see you after a month without making love!" I gasped, pulling the covers over myself and his waist. He tiredly wrapped his arm around me and chuckled.

"I can never get enough of you Madeleine." He said, kissing my forehead as a shrill cry filled the room. I sighed, but Charles got up, pulling his robe on.

He picked the baby up as he cried angrily. I knew that cry, it was his hungry cry. I held my arms out.

"Come here..." I said softly, taking him from Charles. He fed eagerly falling asleep during the feeding. I handed him back to his father's waiting arms once he was done and laid down beside Charles, who held him securely on his chest as he had earlier. The baby slept easily on his sturdy chest, his little hands balled up into fists as he breathed slowly and evenly.

"What do you say Erik Raoul? Would you like a little sister too?" He asked and pretended to listen for a response.

"See? The decision is unanimous!" He said and I laughed.

"Not right now Charles...I'm just beginning to remember the way my body was." I said, resting my head on his shoulder and closing my eyes. I could almost feel him grin.

"Whenever you are ready my sweet..." He said innocently.

"Oh but you are evil Charles Gerard..." I giggled.

The next morning, I left little Erik with his father and grandfathers, going out for my first day out since he was born. I was having lunch with Deirdre, Camille and Rosaline and Deirdre's house. Genevieve was a bit young and her mother said that she should stay home.

"I think Gabriel is going to propose soon." Camille said shyly and Rosaline laughed.

"Mother will shoot him in the foot...not to mention Daddy...they still say you're too young to marry." She said and Camille stuck her tongue out at her.

"I am seventeen years old. One year older than Mother was when she and Daddy married. And you are only nineteen Rosie and you are married!" She said defiantly. I looked over at Deirdre who shrugged, patting her six months pregnant belly. She suppressed a giggle.

"So, Maddie, how is the baby?" Rosaline asked me and I nodded.

"He's adorable...perfect really and Charles is just so wonderful with him...I would have never thought he would be such an attentive father." I said and Deirdre nodded.

"With any luck, Daniel will be the same way." She said and Camille nodded.

"Oh, he will...Dan waited to marry you since he was thirteen, God knows how long he has been thinking about you carrying his children." She said and Rosaline nodded knowingly.

"Have you thought of any names yet?" I asked my best friend who nodded.

"Well, we know for sure if it's a girl, she will be named Antoinette after Granny...but we aren't sure for a boy." She replied, sipping her tea. Camille giggled and piped up,

"Young Alex has been coming around our house a lot lately...I think he fancies Geni..." She said and Deirdre rolled her eyes.

"It's about time that idiot cared about something other than dirt and getting into trouble." She said thinking a moment before saying, "Or she laughs at his horrible jokes." Camille laughed.

"You're too hard on him Didi...he's a sweet boy and when he grows up your mother is going to have a real looker on her hands." I laughed out loud now, unable to imagine gangly Alex all grown up and handsome, but somehow I knew the day would come. I stood, seeing how fast the time had gone by.

"Well...I must get home. God knows what chaos those three men have caused!" I said laughed, pulling my cloak on. "Charles's birthday is soon...I can't believe a year went by so fast!" I said and Deirdre nodded.

"And to think, a year ago, you threw a bouquet of flowers in his face!" She said and I waved her off and said goodbye to my cousins before leaving.

I returned home to find Dad was in his study and Charles had run to the office. Erik was left alone with the baby, who was crying.

"Madeleine! Thank God you're home!" He said, looking up from the kitchen table. I laughed, he looked unkempt and disheveled, as if he had been to Hell and back.

"What seems to be the problem Erik?" I said, draping my cloak over a chair. He sighed.

"He's well...he's gone in his pants." He said and I threw my head back in amusement and laughed. Erik scowled.

"Well...it's not that funny..." He grumbled as I took the baby with one arm and his hand with the other.

"Come Grandpa...I am going to teach you how to change your grandson's diaper." I bit back a giggle.

I laid my baby on the changing table in my bedroom and removed his soiled cloth, wiping him down and pulling out a fresh one. I gently wrapped it on him and secured it with a pin.

"There," I said, sitting him up, "All better baby..." I kissed his dark curls and looked up at his grandfather, satisfied. He looked surprised and amused.

"That's all...?" He asked and I nodded, handing the baby back to him.

"Indeed...nothing to it..." I said, taking his arm and walking back down the stairs with him. "Tea?" I asked, moving to warm some water. He nodded as Charles came in the door.

"You're home already?" He asked, coming up behind me and kissing my neck. "Why don't we go upstairs and reprise last night my love?" He purred.

"Ahem." Erik cleared his throat and I laughed out loud.

"Later husband...patience is a virtue. Now sit and have some tea." I instructed as Charles flushed and took the baby from Erik, cuddling him gently.

"How is my baby boy?" He asked, kissing the baby's chubby cheeks. I smirked, looking at Erik.

"I just gave his grandfather a lesson in taking care of him..." I said and Charles laughed knowingly.

"It's a bit jarring at first I must admit. I remember the first time I fixed him about a day after he was born and I was mortified!" He cried as I set the tea in front of them.

"Yes darling...I remember." I said, sitting beside my husband. I leaned in for a kiss and Erik sighed, reaching and taking the baby back.

"You two...for the love of God go spend some time together!" He said and Charles looked surprised.

"What?" He asked and Erik chuckled.

"You've both hardly had time to steal a kiss much less spend a while together. Go...Erik Raoul and I will be fine. We'll go bother the crazy bastard upstairs!" He said looking at the baby, whose eyes were wide open. "Isn't that right Erik Raoul?" He asked and the baby yawned. I laughed.

"That's his way of saying yes I suppose..." I said as Charles took my hand and we headed for the stairs. He turned back to look at Erik.

"Thanks...Dad..." He said, looking confused and serious all at once, but still smiling. I may have imagined it, but I think I saw Erik smile too.

* * *

**Sucks...I know...but there aren't many chapters left. I think there are four. **

**Syd**


	45. Chapter 45

CHARLES

The day I turned twenty-six began almost exactly like the day I turned twenty-five. Dad left early in the morning to visit Mother's grave. The only thing different was that Erik had gone with him. Madeleine was stretched out tiredly from the night before. She'd given me my present early. Little Erik now slept in the nursery instead of our room, so I walked in quietly to check on him. He was already awake and holding his tiny foot in his hand. He now recognized me when I held him or spoke to him. He was beginning to hold his head up by himself. His hair was a mass of shiny black curls identical to my own. I only hoped when we had our little girl hopefully in the next year or so, that she would look like Maddie.

A year ago, I would have never even considered I would have a son and a wife, or even that I would be content as a husband and a father, but now that I have seen how wonderful it is, I realized how wonderful it is. The moment I saw Maddie, I knew she was the one and we still have our singing lessons. Of course, we fight through them and hardly ever finish them because we only end up back in bed. Not that I mind. I now consider myself to have two fathers, of course, calling Erik Dad sometimes had been strange for me and him, but we're getting used to it. Maddie also calls them both Dad, but it's easier for her because sometimes she calls Raoul Daddy, which he loves.

As I took Erik downstairs, his grandfather's walked in the door, both of them looking a but peaked.

"Everything alright?" I asked quietly so Maddie wouldn't have to wake. Erik shook his head.

"That was the hardest thing I have ever had to face." He said, holding his head. Dad nodded and urged him to the kitchen.

"I take it he faced Mother's grave then?" I asked and Dad nodded.

"He broke down the second he saw it. It was one of the hardest things I have ever had to watch. Charles, he never even got to say goodbye to her." He said and I nodded, adjusting the baby as Madeleine appeared in her robe.

"Morning darling." I said as she nodded, taking the baby and rocking him.

"Happy Birthday Charles. We met one year ago today…" She said and I nodded.

When she saw Erik blankly sipping his tea she looked at Dad and I knowingly and sat beside him.

"How are you?" She asked, holding his arm. He looked at her.

"I've been better." He muttered and she nodded, putting an arm around him and resting her head on his shoulder.

"She would have wanted you to be happy today." Dad said to him, folding his arms. "It's Charles's birthday…he was her pride." I looked at Dad and hugged him tightly. Oh, how I missed her. Dad cleared his throat.

"Well…now that I have you all together. I must tell you something." He said and we all looked at him expectantly. He pulled from his coat pocket four tickets.

"I have four tickets here to the London production of _Aida._" He said and I looked around for my cat who usually slinked around when people were in the room.

Sure enough, she was at Erik's feet. I grinned.

"Dad, _Aida!_ I love it!" I said and Maddie nodded.

"I've never seen an opera from the audience before!" She laughed as the baby completely fell asleep in her arms.

"Well, he's not really one for company is he?" I asked, taking him from her. He was getting big already. He was fourteen pounds and was beginning to coo and squeal in delight when Maddie kissed his cheeks. He also had a habit of pulling hair.

"I was just telling Erik today that you would be a great Radames one day!" Dad said, winking at Maddie. I sighed.

"Dad…I am an architect now…we have a baby…it's just not going to happen for a while." Dad laughed.

"I know Charles…but when you are ready to go back, I can assure you both, that there is a reserved spot for you two at the new Opera Populaire when it reopens next summer." Maddie shook her head.

"We're not going back for a while…" She said and Dad nodded.

"I know…" He replied and shook her head again.

"No…we're going to try for another one when Erik is a little older. A girl perhaps?" She said and I looked at her surprised. She smiled. Both men looked at me for confirmation and I nodded.

"A girl, yes." I said blankly, never taking my eyes off of hers, and suddenly I wanted her like I had never wanted her before. "Maddie…you look so tired, let me take you for some rest." I said, cradling the baby. She looked at Erik then at Dad as if I were crazy.

"Charles I am fine I really don't…"

"No Maddie, I _really _think you should get some sleep…_now._" I said, knowing damn well the begging was in my voice. I didn't care. Erik snickered as a small smiled played at Dad's mouth. Maddie still hadn't caught on.

"Charles I don't know what has gotten into you…oh!" She said, realization coming into her eyes. "Of course!" She said yawning. I slapped a hand to my head and sighed. Dad laughed.

"Shall I take the baby while you two…um, rest?" He asked and I scowled at him, taking Maddie's arm as he took the baby.

"Have a nice nap!" Erik called, chuckling as he sipped his tea. His grief momentarily forgotten.

"Goodness Charles!" Maddie cried when we were finished. "What has gotten into you?" She asked and I shrugged.

"I don't know…seeing your hair all wild and hearing you talk about wanting a daughter. It made me crazy for you!" I said nuzzling her neck, and she took a deep breath, settling beside me. She laughed.

"Oh Charles…you are insane and I love you." She said, yawning. "Now that you mention it I really am tired." She said and I laughed. "Happy Birthday Charles…did you get everything you wanted?" She asked and I nodded, pulling her close.

"Much more." I said, resting my cheek on her head.

Hours later all of our friends and family was assembled in the house just as they had been the year before. Only this time, Deirdre Bennett was Deirdre Reynolds, and soon to be mother. My cousin Daniel never left her side. Not once. I'd never seen him so happy. Rosaline and her husband Stephen sat near her parents. He was a nice man, older than her by about thirteen years but very kind, and he adored her. Gabe and Camille had not arrived yet but Alex sat beside Geni pestering her.

"Bennett! I swear to God, if you don't stop it, I going to…" Aunt Laney grabbed her arm firmly.

"You'll do nothing, love. Now behave yourself." She said, smiling at everyone.

"She hates boys." She explained as Geni scowled, sitting between her parents. Uncle Garrett laughed and kissed her cheeks. She'd really grown up this past year. Replacing the awkward child she'd been, she had rounded out a bit and had grown into her face, which was quite pretty. Almost an exact replica of Rosaline as a matter of fact. She was also more self possessed. She no longer seemed to want to be the baby, but a woman. Alex Bennett was now fifteen, and his voice was nearly changed into that of a man. He had Aunt Meg's blonde hair and his father's chiseled features. He was still a bit awkward and skinny but he was definitely not a little boy any more. Geni pretended to despise him, but it was clear she thought he was pretty terrific.

"Um, Maddie…can I hold the baby?" Geni asked shyly and Madeleine nodded, smiling as she sat Geni down beside her and I placed little Erik in her arms. Aunt Laney smiled.

"She's never been around babies because she is the baby!" She laughed as she knelt beside her daughter and helped her hold his head.

"Mama…I can't wait to have children." She said and Uncle Garrett nearly choked. I chuckled, putting my arm around Maddie.

"Well, you'll have to wait at least three years or you'll send your father into an early grave with the heart attack he'll have!" She said, brushing Geni's hair from her face as Erik laughed where he sat near us.

"And you want to have a girl." He said to me. I nodded.

"It can't be so hard…" I said and Aunt Laney gave me a look.

"Sure it isn't." She muttered, and kissed her daughter's cheek.

"Maddie, he's so…lovely." The girl cooed as she touched his thick hair. Her hair was long and shining and hung over her shoulders in sweet waves. Maddie nodded.

"He is lovely…and he's not crying, which means he must like you!" She said, kissing Erik's head. Geni leaned over, giggling and when she did, Erik got a good handful of her pretty hair and put it straight in his mouth. She shrieked and Maddie took him gently back, prying his fingers off of my little cousin's hair. I laughed as Geni pouted.

"Mama…maybe you're right. I am not ready for children!" She sighed as Aunt Laney laughed and pulled her into her arms.

"Oh Geni…you are so sweet." She said, kissing her forehead. Geni looked back down at my son, who was falling asleep in Maddie's arms. She pulled her hair back and kissed his little nose.

"It's alright…I still think you're wonderful." She whispered and sat between her parents again.

Alex laughed.

"Dumb girls and their dumb babies." He said sticking his tongue out at her which she repeated. Aunt Meg grabbed his ear.

"Alexander enough!" She said. "Next time, I will beat you with Granny's cane until you beg for mercy if you don't leave that poor child alone!" She said and both Maddie and I hid a smirk.

"Whew! Little Giry, I am afraid of how you're going to be as a grandmother." Dad exclaimed, brushing his light hair out of his eyes and chuckling. Uncle Will nodded.

"She's quite insane…" He agreed and Erik sighed.

"She takes after her mother, God bless her." He said and Aunt Meg looked up at him with such a look of gratitude in her eyes I thought she might cry.

"Thank you Monsieur. Now as for you Chagny, you can kiss my…"

"Mama!" Deirdre cried in shock coming back into the room.

"Everything come out alright sis?" Alex asked, with a snicker. Dan hid a laugh too, not very well though for his wife heard him and elbowed him in the stomach.

"Oh you know I love you Di." He said, calling her his pet name for her. She pretended to narrow her eyes at him and glare at him until she sat down careful before bursting into giggles.

"Oh come here you flake." She said and he gladly sat beside her.

"Hello? We're here!" Camille's voice came from the foyer as she walked in positively grinning from ear to ear as Gabe took her coat. His face was flushed and I didn't know if it was from the cold or excitement but the two of them were simply bubbling.

"Alright," I said, hating to be in the dark. "Out with it you two." And Gabe looked up, tossing his mask aside without care.

"I didn't say a word." He said grinning mischievously. Aunt Laney shook her head.

"Oh tell them Millie." She said and Camille held up her hand to flash her shiny new engagement ring.

"Millie!" Geni cried and ran to her sister as Deirdre crooked her finger for Camille to go to her since she didn't want to get up. Gabe came over to shake my hand and kissed Maddie's cheek.

"It's about time." She said, pinching his cheek lightly. He laughed and shook Erik's hand as well. They'd met at our wedding and obviously their similar situations had helped the conversation along.

"Congratulations." Erik said, nodding toward Camille who was blushing as Deirdre prodded her with questions.

Maddie handed the baby to me and moved to join them as Gabe took her place beside me and gently tugged at little Erik's foot.

"Hello there little man…you look like your Papa…" He said in a baby talk voice. He then smirked up at me. "We're all so sorry you couldn't look like your Mama." He said, elbowing me in the arm. I punched his shoulder and he laughed. "Kidding…he's adorable. We're going to have about ten, right Millie?" He called as she looked up.

"What do I look like, a machine?" She asked as Uncle Garrett shook his head and rested it on Aunt Laney's forehead. She smiled and kissed his graying light hair.

"Oh Garrett…we still have Geni." She said and he looked up at Genevieve who was smacking at Alex again. He sighed.

"Not for long. Do they have to grow so fast?" She giggled, squeezing his hand.

"Usually dear."

I looked at Maddie and grinned, thinking of our son and the daughter we would have soon. The daughter who had not yet even been conceived. She smiled back sitting beside Deirdre and patting her abdomen as they spoke quiety with Rosie and Camille. Maddie had grown from the unsure chorus girl into a woman and had become my wife. She had given me a son. She'd given me everything I never wanted and I couldn't have been more indebted to anyone. As I looked down into my son's green eyes I knew that this was the life I was meant to lead. The life that my parents had run from, but everyone deserves a second chance. I looked over to my father, the man who had conceived me and grinned. Then I looked at the man who raised me, who looked at both Maddie and myself with such pride it tore my heart in two, for when I had found my birth father, he hadn't lost a son, but had gained a daughter. The daughter he had sorely wished for. A daughter born of the love he'd shared with another tortured soul.

I realize now that we cannot stay angry or become embittered because of the fate we have been dealt. The only way it will be better is if we want it to get better. Even if you think you've lost everything, there is so much to gain. I had the proof of it sitting in my arms and holding one of my fingers in his tiny hand. My mother had loved my father, it was clear in the way he looked at me and my son. A horrid twist of fate had shunned him from the world, but it was the love of a young girl that had brought him back into the light and given him what he'd secretly longed for. Freedom, but above all beauty. His dreams of beauty were now a reality and although the girl he'd loved so well was not here to share it with him, she was surely waiting for him beyond the lake…beyond the world. She would wait until the day he joined her and they could finally be together. Maddie and I met eyes then and I knew we'd found Heaven already. My love…my Maddie, my Madeleine.

**Two more…sorry…I know I said there would be 4 more counting this one, but it is pointless and I think this ending the Charles/Maddie saga is better. So, there are two more chapters! **

**Thanks…sorry if this is eh…but it had to end and don't worry! I am doing a prequel! Yay! **

**Sydnee!**


	46. Chapter 46

RAOUL

1907

I can't believe it's Christmas again. The year flew by so fast. It seems like just last week I present Charles with tickets to _Faust. _Yet, as I sit beside my daughter and her son, I realize we were all led to each other for some reason. Maybe we were guided by a…guardian Angel. Thank you Christine…Thank you God, for giving me a son, a daughter and a grandson. Finding Madeleine was certainly the greatest thing that had ever happened to me because she was not only my child, but her marriage to Charles truly made him my son and his children my grandchildren. The moment I realized Madeleine was my daughter, I experienced the exact feeling of pure bliss as I had when I'd first held Charles. The first time I'd kissed Christine. The first time I'd kissed Chloé. Oh Chloé, you should see her. She's absolutely perfect.

She has your eyes and I'd never noticed before, but my nose. At first glance, we'd all seen Christine, but once you really look at her, they couldn't be more different. They are two completely different women, as they should be. I have never seen Charles happier than when he holds his son and kisses his wife. He lives and breathes for them. In my entire life I have only seen one other man love like that. That man is Charles's father. Erik. My enemy and the best friend I've ever had. That man never ages, I swear to God. There may be a few lines around his eyes and his thick ebony hair is now highlighted with a few random silver streaks, but he is the same.

I never thought I'd see the day when we would be friends, or even civil enemies, but it's happened to both of our dismays. In all honesty though, he's somewhat become my replacement wife, strange as that sounds. He is obsessed with neatness and he is a surprisingly good cook, not to mention his Russian tea with lemon puts Christine's to shame.

Just as I suspected he would, Erik has formed a bond with Charles's Siamese cat Aida. That damned cat. If Erik sits at the piano, so does she. Where he sleeps, she sleeps. He treats her as if she is a princess and she loves every moment of it. She should, she is just like Ayesha, Christine's beloved cat which died when Charles was twelve. Erik had given her to Christine as somewhat of a parting gift. He dotes on that damned animal like she's some Persian queen. I tell him all the time he's as crazy as he is old. His usual response is to raise his eyebrow and threaten to put a lasso around my neck. Then Madeleine and her son enter the room and he melts into a puddle of sentimental mush. Damned hypocrite.

As we sat down to Christmas dinner with our friends and family, I realized how lucky we all are. We've been through deaths, weddings, births, fires and after all of that, we still managed to smile on this special night. As I smiled at Madeleine, she winked at me for I know she has a secret to tell Charles tonight. He sat oblivious beside her, joking with Gabe about his upcoming wedding to my niece Camille. Deirdre, who was now almost ready to pop with she and Daniel's first child sat tiredly, resting her head on his shoulder as her mother stroked her hair. Alex, of course was teasing Genevieve, my youngest niece. Everyone seemed quite content. Meg looked at me sadly and I knew she was thinking about Madame Giry who was sorely missed. Monsieur Nadir Khan was also celebrating with us tonight, having become quite a good friend as well.

Madeleine got up from her seat, and walked over to where Erik and I were sitting and since Erik was in a conversation with Nadir, I took the chubby baby giving her a grin.

"Raoul de Chagny…what does that daughter of yours have up her sleeve?" Erik asked, seeing the exchange of glances between us.

"Nothing…" I said and he glared at me, muttering something about me being a ridiculous jack-ass. I only laughed.

Sure enough Charles and Madeleine came back to the table both of them grinning impishly from ear to ear.

"Now Charles, you know damn well you can't come back looking like that and not tell us what happened!" Gabe said, giving his fiancée a playful nudge. She repeated the gesture. Charles laughed out loud.

"Maddie and I are going to have another bundle of joy at the end of August next year." He said and Gabe's mouth dropped.

"You two don't waste time, do you?" Camille said, sending Gabe into a fit of laughter. It was good to see her back to her old self. Maddie blushed as Erik turned to me.

"You deceitful bastard." He said, touching the baby's cheek.

"Congratulations to you too, you dolt!" I shot back, biting my cheek to keep from grinning as he scowled at me. I knew he didn't mean it though. It was his way of showing excitement, insane as it sounds.

"Oh no…" Deirdre moaned. That tone could only mean one thing. Daniel lost all color in his face.

"So soon?" He asked and Madeleine shook her head.

"It's only three weeks early." She said and he sighed in relief.

"Right…so…what do I do?" He asked, looking at Charles helplessly then at me.

"Well, might I suggest we go home so that I don't give birth in the Chagny's dining room?" Deirdre asked as her mother helped her up. Charles nodded.

"Yes, besides, we just had the carpet cleaned and that would create and awful mess." He said with a smirk. Deirdre glared and him and threw her napkin at him.

As the Reynolds family and the Bennetts left, we began to clean up as Maddie and Charles put Erik Raoul to bed. They joined us in the sitting room an hour later, as we talked about the night.

"I only wish Madame Giry had been here too." Madeleine said and Charles nodded.

"She was though, in a way…I mean, it felt like she was, you know?" She nodded.

"Yes, I know what you mean." She replied as Charles bit his lip.

"So are you feeling sick at all this time?" He asked and she shook her head.

"No. I didn't the first time either. It must just be good luck." She said as there was a knock at the front door. Charles got up to answer it and opened the door to find Gabe and Camille standing there grinning.

"Do we have a baby?" I asked, and Camille nodded.

"Anna Belle. Oh she's perfect Uncle Raoul. She's blonde of course, and it's hard to tell, but I think she looks just like Deirdre." She said as Gabe looked thoughtful.

"I rather think she looks just like a vegetable." He said and Camille smacked him.

"That's because you're an idiot." She said, not missing a beat. "You will eat your words one day Gabriel Ames because I for one, want at least three children." She said as he put a hand to his head.

"God help me." He said and Charles laughed.

"Well, give them our congratulations…and congratulations to you Millie for becoming an aunt today." He said kissing her cheek. She nodded, waving her goodbyes and pulling Gabe out the door.

"Well, now the world really is overrun with Girys." Erik said sadly. "Isn't it funny Antoinette, that your great granddaughter was born on Christmas, two days before your own birthday?" He asked no one. It was easy to see he was struggling with his emotions. We all knew the baby's name had been a tribute to her great grandmother.

"I must go see Alana tomorrow." I said aloud and Maddie nodded.

"I'll come too. Erik Raoul can meet his cousin." She laughed as Charles kissed her forehead.

"I'm tired, love. Bed?" He asked and she nodded, yawning before she moved to kiss Erik's cheek and then mine.

"Goodnight dear." I said as they left the room. Erik was still staring into the fire with that frown on his face.

"Was she in pain when she died?" He asked and I became confused.

"Who? Madame Giry?" I asked and he shook his head, almost afraid to say the word.

"No. Christine." He uttered the words and time seemed to stand still. I sighed, not wanting to tell him the truth. Hesitantly I bit my lip and whispered.

"Yes. But by the end, she was a bit delirious with the morphine they gave her and she managed to smile through it all." I said and he tried to smile.

"She always did." He said. Unthinking I patted his shoulder as I would try to comfort my son or nephew and he grabbed my hand for a moment, but only for a moment and I knew then that we were friends. I left him to his thoughts and went to my own room.

As I lay in my bed thinking of Christine, Chloé entered my mind. What if I hadn't left her? What if we had raised Madeleine together and Erik and Christine had raised Charles? Would Maddie and Charles still have loved each other? Or would we have allowed the bitterness to get in the way of true love for I know in my heart that Madeleine and Charles were meant to be together. Then I realized that we aren't supposed to question. Things had turned out the way they should have and I realized that there are no more questions, only answers. I had been fortunate enough to love two women in my life and for my brief time with those women I will be forever grateful. And Chloé, not a day went by that I did not think of you…not one. Finally, things were as they should be…finally.

**One more to go! Can you guess who's POV it will be? GUESS! Anyway…the end is near. Hope you all liked it. **


	47. Chapter 47

**I've done it. I've finally finished this...two years too late, but all the same. I read it through and I fell in love with my characters all over again. I hope you've all enjoyed Charles and Madeleine's journey as much as I have. A prequel to this will be in production shortly. **

**Thank you thank you thank you to all of you who have so kindly read and reviewed this. **

**Sydnee**

* * *

**ERIK **

Twenty six years

Twenty six years. My God, has it been that long since I saw you? Twenty-six years since I held you in my arms. It wasn't supposed to be you. You were supposed to outlive me. Christine, I never thought I would have to live in a world without you. And yet, here I am…waiting for your second grandchild to be born. You should see him, Christine…he's beautiful. He's like nothing I could have ever dreamed, that son of your…ours. _Our_ son. And then, of course, there is Madeleine…who is such a gift, and deserves every happiness she's achieved since she met Charles. You would be so proud of Raoul, Christine. He raised Charles to be the best man he could be. I wouldn't have done so well…we both know it. Especially without you. I don't know…maybe we would have been all right. It's frightening to see someone who looks so like me. Well, partially anyway…

After you'd left me that final time, I knew I had to leave. I had to make you think I was dead so that you could be happy. It was silly of me, I know. I went to Italy and began my architecture again, and then back to Persia…though I never brought myself to kill again. I was simply a friend to the shah in his final days. So many times, I'd see a girl who had your hair…or your eyes…or smile and it would hurt. It hurt so badly. I didn't know when you died. It never even dawned on me. Surely I should have felt the world go cold when you left it. But perhaps I was so numb in my misery that I felt nothing anyway. But you didn't really die, did you? You live on in your son…in your grandchildren. I see it sometimes when Charles smiles or laughs or shows one of your mannerisms. There is no doubt you are still part of him. And it is strange, since we've barely known each other over a year, but I see _me _in him. When he speaks, it's my voice that comes out of his mouth. The way he holds himself, his eyes…they're me. It's a bit scary actually. He's a godsend though…and to think I would have never known him if I hadn't come back in the hopes of catching just one glimpse of you.

I love you still…forever.

"Erik?" I looked up from my thoughts to see Raoul standing. I listened intently to the sounds from above and I thought I heard a cry. We glanced at each other and both headed toward the stairs leading up to the room where Madeleine was, at this very moment, birthing her second child. Another cry. Therese emerged from the room, with Charles in tow, looking as if he had just swam the English Channel without stopping.

"Well?" I asked impatiently, ignoring Raoul's smirk. Charles ginned, his face lighting up.

"A girl! It's a girl!" He rushed forward and embraced both of us at the same time. I could not hold back a smile as tears burned my eyes. "She looks exactly like Maddie. At least, I think so…and I don't think even Erik Raoul had so much hair!"

"Can we see her?" Raoul asked. Charles nodded.

"She's through with the afterbirth and they covered her up. She's resting right now, and I think the poor baby is too. She seemed terribly distressed." He laughed.

"I'm sure she was." I said, thinking sympathetically of the child. We followed him into the room where Madeleine was lying on the bed, looking exhausted, but her smile comforted me. She held the baby in her arms.

"Hello." She said weakly.

"How are you, my dear?" I asked her. Yawning in response, she smiled.

"Better, now that she's here." She replied. Raoul sat on the bed beside her, kissing her forehead.

"She looks so like you." He said with a smile. Maddie looked at Charles and giggled.

"Wait until you two see her eyes. You'll die." She said, looking down at her daughter. I met Raoul's eyes in confusion. He shrugged, but Charles was there, always ready to explain.

"Her eyes are blue, Dad." He said, looking at Raoul. "She has your eyes." Raoul looked back down at the baby, and gingerly, took her from her mother. The baby, opened her eyes then, feeling the movement and stared at him.

"Oh my, but you are lovely." He said, the sentimental fool he was, with tears in his eyes.

"Have you decided on a name for her?" I asked quickly, determined to remain stoic. Maddie nodded as Raoul thrust the child into my arms before I could protest.

"Her name is Christine." Charles said, his voice husky.

"We're keeping with the tradition we've begun and her middle name is Chloè." Maddie added, smiling up at her father. Leaning down, he embraced her tightly.

"Thank you." He whispered.

"So," I interrupted dryly, cradling the little angel in my arms, "Can we expect any more issue from you soon?"

"No!" Both Charles and Madeleine cried at the same time. I chuckled, peering into the baby's face. She was still awake, and staring at me in wonder. I was entranced by her full pouting lips and wild, dark curls.

"Christine…" I whispered to her. "I am going to teach you to sing…and you are going to be wonderful."

"Don't you put any crazy ideas in my granddaughter's head you loon." Raoul said with an infuriating smile.

"Don't toy with me Chagny…I still have that noose." I muttered, as the baby yawned. Charles grinned at me, sitting with his arm around Madeleine and I suddenly knew I was at home with these three people. Raoul…his daughter and my son and their two children. They were my family…My dearest wish had come true, late in life yes, but all the same. I truly did believe in Angels at that moment. I looked down at the sweet cherubic face of my granddaughter…and I saw Christine there in her eyes.


End file.
